Rui Malheiro says Pote shouldn’t start for Benfica v Sporting, here’s why | OneFootball

Rui Borges will have to make some decisions regarding Sporting’s starting eleven against Benfica. Rui Malheiro ends up ‘assisting’ the Lions’ coach in this task and believes that Pote should start the match on the bench, since he is not fit to play the full game.

“Quenda would deserve it, but if he is fit for more than 60 minutes, Pote will always be a starter,” said the Record newspaper analyst, continuing: “If Pote can only play for 60 minutes, I think it would make more sense to keep Quenda as a starter and bring on Pote later, even if it’s at the start of the second half if Rui Borges feels there’s something to improve.”

However, Rui Malheiro also recalls that Pedro Gonçalves and Quenda can play in the same eleven, but notes that Rui Borges has been betting on the dynamic between Iván Fresneda and Geny Catamo: “Looking at previous classics, Geny will be a starter with Fresneda. Another option is to put Quenda in that position, but then it would be Vagiannidis playing. I don’t think there will be such a profound metamorphosis.”

The other choice the Sporting coach will have to make for the derby will be between João Simões and Hidemasa Morita. In this case, Rui Malheiro believes it should be the academy player who gets the spot: “Morita, at his best, would be a starter, but in the tougher matches, Rui Borges has opted for João Simões, who has delivered. He just needs to improve his awareness in terms of off-the-ball movement, when the team needs to create numerical superiority, which is what Morita does by opening up more on the left flank. João Simões tends to play more through the central channel, skipping a line to appear between the lines. In some games, he also reached finishing areas. Playing in the same position, they offer different things.”

“It’s still not very clear how far he can go, but he has the ability to be a starter for Sporting as a number 8. He can improve his decision-making, especially with passing, but he has an offensive versatility that allows him to appear in finishing areas. He also plays a decisive role in collective pressing,” he added, about João Simões.

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