Leonino exclusive - Arsenal? Beto Pimparel warns: Sporting can hurt... | OneFootball

Beto Pimparel believes Sporting have a strong chance of reaching the Champions League semi-finals. Despite the recent 1-0 defeat to Arsenal at Alvalade in the first leg of the quarter-finals, the former Sporting goalkeeper believes the green and whites will make an impact in London. Even so, he also highlighted the hopes surrounding a possible third straight league title.

"Obviously, Sporting showed they can hurt this Arsenal side, thus proving that the gap between the two teams is not that big. They showed their ability, their weapons and solutions to also get to the opponent’s goal. They were not clinical, that’s true, but in my view [Sporting] still have a say in this tie," he began by saying.

"I believe Sporting will fight for the tie for 90 minutes in London and that, if they do lose, they will do so with their heads held high. Everything is still open, [Sporting] have a real chance to make an impact in London and to keep hoping for qualification to the semi-finals," stressed the former green-and-white goalkeeper.

When asked about the performance of Viktor Gyökeres in what was his return to Alvalade, Beto said: "I felt he was uncomfortable, even anonymous at times [...] thanks to the quality of Sporting’s defensive line. However, I believe that perhaps London will be a more comfortable setting for him to show something different."

Finally, the former Portugal international gave his thoughts on the possible achievement of a third straight league title: "Sporting have to do their job, which is to win every game in this league until the end. And they will obviously have to maintain this momentum until the finish. It will not only be exciting for Sporting, but also for Portuguese football."

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