Quaresma criticism, errors and Suárez: Rui Borges after Sporting draw | OneFootball

After Sporting’s draw against Estrela da Amadora (2-2) on the opening matchday of the league, Rui Borges analysed the game in a press conference. The Sporting coach reviewed the match at the Estádio José Gomes, addressing the main moments of the team’s official debut in the new season.

Match analysis

"What was missing was avoiding those two mistakes we made and should not have made... we played very well for 70 minutes and were less good for 20 or 25. The moment we made almost all the substitutions was when we lost our shape, and that cannot happen. We brought on fresh players to help, to give the team intensity, and we did not have that. It seems we became a bit doubtful about ourselves after conceding for 1-2, we let Estrela believe, but we have to do much more. We cannot be good for only 70 minutes, we have to be good for 100 minutes, compete until the end; let this serve as a warning to everyone, they have to give much more.

There was a moment when the referee spoke to Inácio and he then spoke to Suárez, who complained. Did Suárez bring frustration from that training-ground incident into the match in Amadora? And did you not consider using Nel instead of Suárez?

"It was my choice, Suárez. I don’t know what the referee said. Suárez had a yellow card, he was tight with the centre-back, so it is normal that the referee warned him. They are game situations.

Quaresma made that mistake for Estrela’s first goal and Inácio also had some difficult moments. Are you now more concerned about Diomande’s departure and the recoveries of Debast and Ibrahima Ba?

"They are both recovered. Quaresma could not stop in that move for the 2-1. I don’t know if he stopped because we were winning 2-0. He played a terrific game, but ended up staining it with an individual mistake. The stature of this club does not allow this type of mistake; if we want to be champions, we have to do much more".

Rodrigo Dias and Flávio Gonçalves started, how did you see their performances?

"They have shown their individual and collective quality. They were very good throughout the game and I was happy with what they were able to do".

In the second half you took off Flávio Gonçalves and put Doumbia out wide; wasn’t that a signal to the team that 2-0 was a comfortable scoreline?

"It was only a matter of freshness. It has to do with the way we started and approached the game. The lads who came on had to help the team more than they actually did. Things do not always go as we want, that is true. Let this game serve as an example to everyone".

Is Diomande a concern because he is on his way out? And how did you see the whistles and applause after the end of the game, is that extra pressure for the new players?

"The pressure exists from the start, they have to know how to withstand it and deal with it; if they are at this club it is because we recognise they have the quality to handle that pressure. The demands are at the highest level. Diomande is a Sporting player, he was on the bench".

Regarding the link-up between Zalazar and Geny on the right, they exchanged the ball a lot and even swapped positions, with runs in behind; what has it been like to see that relationship develop and is it something you want to work on even more?

"The connections will get better and better over time. Zalazar had a good game, I know what we worked on, the process, and they know it very well. As time goes by they will bring many different things to the team, with the connections they create with each other".

"What he gave in this game was balance, quality, calmness on the ball; he played a great game, was always switched on, always in the right places, and won the team back a lot of balls. That is what he gives and what we expect from him throughout the season".

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