Coach Rui Borges assumed this Saturday, the 31st, that Sporting wants to “fight for everything” in its power, but refused that this is the most important week of the season for the two-time national football champions.
“Sporting is not happy with a Cup [de Portugal]. Be happy, yes, to fight for everything. He wants to fight for everything.” said the coach, at a press conference in Alcochete, when asked about the importance of the week ahead.
Sporting hosts Nacional, on Sunday, in the 20th round of the I League, four days after securing direct passage to the round of 16 of the Champions League and before discussing, on Thursday, with AVS, the passage to the semi-finals of the Portuguese Cup and visiting, on February 9th, the championship leader, FC Porto.
Therefore, Borges acknowledged that “it is an important week” because the ‘lions’ play “with the first placed team, away from home”, in a match in which they have the opportunity to try to close the seven-point gap to the ‘dragons’, but he focused on Sunday’s meeting.
“First we have to beat Nacional, so as not to let [o FC Porto] increase this margin. Then, yes, we thought about AVS and only then, then, did we think about FC Porto. There are three important games, in an important week. I don’t say more [importante]but in an important week, yes”, he summarized.
In this sense, he also assured that the creative Pedro Gonçalves and striker Luís Suárez, who are at risk of suspension, will leave “zero conditioned” for the game against the Madeirans, for which “they are an option”.
“I count on them. They know the responsibility, they know better than anyone that they have four [cartões] yellow cards, but the important thing is to beat Nacional, not to think about FC Porto. There’s no point in thinking about FC Porto if we don’t beat Nacional”, stressed the ‘Leonine’ coach.
Furthermore, Sunday’s game takes place after the triumph in the visit to Athletic Bilbao (3-2), in the Champions Leagueand these “become difficult games” due to the “physical and mental exhaustion” that ‘Champions’ matches cause, but Borges assumed confidence in his players to “fight against it”.
“Only a great team can fight and continue to maintain the same quality of play, the same intensity. That is the challenge for us, as a team”, he pointed out.
Furthermore, the match in Spain, on Wednesday, left its mark on the team and defender Gonçalo Inácio had to be replaced before half-time, but “he is called up” for Sunday, revealed Rui Borges.
The squad also includes reinforcement Faye, while striker “Ioannidis is still out”, as well as defenders Matheus Reis, who is serving the first of two suspended games, after being sent off in Arouca, and Debast.
“There’s no problem, it really is [por uma questão de] management of what was his injury. We don’t want him at 60% or 70%, we want him at 100%, which is what’s important, and we need him for this final stretch of the championship”, explained the coach of the ‘green and whites’, regarding the Belgian’s physical condition.
Sporting hosts Nacional, on Sunday, in a match on the 20th round of the I League, scheduled to start at 6pm, at the José Alvalade Stadium, in Lisbon, and refereed by Ricardo Baixinho, from the Lisbon association.
The team coached by Rui Borges remains in second place in the championship and is looking to at least maintain a seven-point gap to the leader, FC Portowhich he visits in the next round.
Nacional, coached by Tiago Margarido, remains in 11th place and is coming off a conclusive victory over Rio Ave (4-0), the only one in the last five matches of the championship.
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