Mourinho needles Rui Borges before Sporting-Benfica: he gives it back | OneFootball

In the preview of the derby between Sporting and Benfica, José Mourinho addressed several topics but without ever revealing everything. Asked about the starting eleven, the Eagles' coach was direct and mentioned Rui Borges - who spoke about Mourinho - , who also did not reveal his lineup.

"As for the eleven, I won't say. Rui Borges doesn't give his either; if he wanted to swap, I would say it without any problem. I won't give it, although I don't see much advantage in hiding it. There also won't be any surprise that justifies my secrecy," he began by saying.

The Benfica coach also analysed the rival's current form, offering clear praise for the Lions' recent performances, especially in Europe. "Sporting are doing very well, they played two very good matches in the Champions League. We have to be pragmatic, consistent, humble in the sense of recognising that we are going to have a difficult game. Benfica have not won the Alvalade derby for a long time, but we are going there to win," he said.

Finally, Mourinho framed the importance of the match in the title race, making it clear that the weight of the game goes far beyond the three points. "We can try to put the derby into context in the sense that both need to win, a draw would give Sporting security regarding second place, but perhaps that is not something that interests them. Regardless of all these variables, a derby is a derby. I can try to reduce unpredictability as much as possible. We worked on different concepts and scenarios," he concluded.

The green-and-white side take the field next Sunday, 19 April, against Benfica. The match, counting for the 30th round of the Liga Portugal Betclic, against the team coached by José Mourinho, will be played at 6:00 pm at the José Alvalade Stadium.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇵🇹 here.