Rui Borges faces major headaches with Benfica-Sporting clash on his mind | OneFootball

Santa Clara - Sporting turned out to be a true nightmare for Rui Borges. Despite the victory of the lions (2-1), the coach of the green and whites left the Azores with two injuries and will not be able to count on his players for a few weeks: Pedro Gonçalves and Fotis Ioannidis.

At the moment, the situation is worse than imagined. Both players might miss the derby against Benfica, at Luz, scheduled for December 5th. Still, Pote's case is the least severe and he might recover in time to face the eternal rival, but there remains a big doubt around him.

Sporting's 'number 8' left around the 60th minute of the game after experiencing pain in his right thigh and, upon returning to Lisbon, underwent detailed examinations and found out he is dealing with a micro-tear - which could keep him off the field for a month. Pote will miss the Marinhense (Portuguese Cup), Club Brugge (Champions League), and Estrela da Amadora (Liga Portugal Betclic), with the rest being uncertain.

Furthermore, Ioannidis's injury seems to have worse implications and, as known, involves an internal collateral ligament injury in his right knee which could sideline him for four to six weeks. Therefore, the Greek is unlikely to be fit in time to face Benfica, and matches against Bayern Munich and AVS are also at risk.

So far, none of the Sporting players have reacted to the incident on social media. However, the newspaper Record writes that both are disappointed for not being able to join their respective national teams during this break for international commitments - as both were called up.

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