Before Sporting-Santa Clara, Rui Borges on the Pote mystery | OneFootball

At the press conference ahead of Sporting v Santa Clara, Rui Borges was asked about Pedro Gonçalves’ situation in the national team, since he was the only call-up not to get any playing time. The Sporting coach pointed to his attitude at Alvalade.

"I hope he is fit. Perhaps he is lacking match sharpness because he didn’t get any minutes, although he was physically well. If he hadn’t been, he wouldn’t have stayed until the end of the training camp. It happens in every national team. It was the coach’s decision; I hope he is motivated, and I believe he is. I’ve already spoken to him. I want him to be motivated and help the team, which is what he has been doing at Sporting," he began by saying.

Asked again about the same subject, Rui Borges once more referred the decision to Roberto Martínez: "You have to ask the national team coach. I believe that, because of everything he has been doing, he is always a player who can make a difference. I make my own choices at Sporting and I’m not going to comment on other people’s. I know he was fit. He had cramp in the last match and recovered in three days. They are choices."

At the moment, the green-and-whites are in third place in the National Championship standings, with 65 points won. Benfica are third with 65 (with one more game played), while Porto lead the competition with 72 points (also with one more game played).

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