Alert! Storm Ingrid could still cause Sporting a headache | OneFootball

This Saturday, Sporting will travel to Arouca for the 19th round of the National Championship, in a match that has caught the attention of the club’s management, not only because it marks a return to the main competition of the Portuguese calendar, but also due to Depression Ingrid.

In the coming days, most of mainland Portugal will be affected by the storm, and today a yellow warning is expected due to rain, as well as a red warning because of the possibility of snow. The area where the home team’s stadium is located is one of the possible affected regions, making it a true test of the pitch’s resilience at the Estádio Municipal de Arouca.

Poor weather is expected to persist at the time of kickoff, so the technical staff of Rui Borges at Sporting are prepared for any eventuality. In this context, the condition and state of the pitch in Arouca will be another factor considered by the 44-year-old coach when giving instructions to his players, after the epic victory against PSG last Tuesday.

However, Sporting’s players are already used to worn-out pitches at their opponents’ grounds. In recent seasons, Sporting has encountered a more degraded pitch in Arouca, although the greatest difficulties actually occurred in the 2023/24 season, when the Lions triumphed 3-0 in the 25th round of the League, on March 10, 2024. In that match, the green carpet was treated and... worn out.

It’s worth noting that the green and white team will be back on the field tomorrow, January 24, against Arouca, in a match for the 19th round of Liga Portugal Betclic. The match against the team led by Vasco Seabra will be played at 18:00, at the Wolves’ den.

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