Sporting coach Rubén Amorim admitted this Monday that the Portuguese Football Cup is “one of the big goals” for him and the club this season and that it is a title that the technical team lacks.
“The club is very eager and the coach also wants to win a Portuguese Cup with Sporting. It is one of the great objectives of the season,” summarized the coach, at the Sporting Academy, in Alcochete, in the preview of the round of 16 of final. match, against Tondela.
Even though Tuesday’s opponent plays in the second division, the two clubs already met in December, for the League Cup, and Rúben Amorim recalled that this “will be a completely different match” than the one the lions won by 2 -1, but reinforced. that his team “very much wants to be in the final and win it.”
“We want to be in the final because it is a special day for the players, we have not achieved it yet, we have not won this title as a Sporting technical team, in a competition in which Sporting has tradition. Therefore, we want to have more responsibility “We want to win and continue playing well,” he defined.
To achieve this, the coach will once again count on captain Coates, who has been out injured since the match against Sturm Graz, in the Europa League, on December 14, but revealed that the Uruguayan “will never be able to play many minutes.” , when at the same time he refused to say whether he will promote the debut of reinforcement Rafael Pontelo in the same sector as the Uruguayan.
“[Coates] He felt good, he trained well today, he is ready to play and we also need him for his position, for his status, for the player he is, for the problem of dead balls, who can help us with that. sense. Therefore, both are called up, one will be able to play the entire game, Seba [Coates] It is guaranteed that he will not play the entire game,” he revealed.
The two also play in a sector in which Sporting has shown some weakness this season, the coach acknowledged, stressing that this is a point in which the team has to “improve” if it wants to “win titles.”
“Because one day that will make the difference. One day when we are not able to be as effective in front of the opposing goal, we have to give the team time to win. If we concede a goal, that changes everything. Therefore, it is a habit that we have to create, which is not conceding goals,” commented the ‘Leonino’ coach.
Sporting hosts Tondela on Tuesday, in a round of 16 match of the Portuguese Football Cup, starting at 6:45 p.m., at the José Alvalade stadium in Lisbon, and refereed by Hélder Malheiro (AF Lisbon).
The team led by Rúben Amorim, leader of the Portuguese First League, defeated Olivais e Moscavide, from the AF Lisbon First District Division, on the third day (3-1, away from home) and Dumiense, from the Portuguese Championship , with a win (8-0, at home), on the fourth day.
Tondela, which remains in sixth position in the II League, left Sporting de Pombal (5-0, away), from the I District Division of AF Leiria, on December 1 (2-1, at home) of the League 3 and Torreense (4-2, after penalties) of the II League.
Source: TSF
