Leonino exclusive: José Pina eyes 2nd, warns Sporting: A... | OneFootball

Despite the recent unpredictability in the league, José Pina still dreams of a place in the Champions League. In an interview with Leonino, the well-known Sporting supporter believes that the pressure has increased even more on Benfica after the draw in Famalicão, and that renewing Rui Borges was the right thing to do.

"It’s been a very unpredictable end to the season, the team has fluctuated a lot in the last few matches but now there is a week of rest coming up. I want to believe that Sporting can secure second place, we’ll see...", he began by telling our newspaper.

Speaking about the draw in Famalicão, which saw Benfica take only one point, José Pina highlighted that the pressure has increased even more on the Eagles’ side: "Sporting have to win all the remaining matches and at most Benfica can draw once again, so that will do. Benfica’s cushion has disappeared and they will now come under huge pressure, and that is a great advantage for Sporting".

Additionally, the well-known green-and-white supporter briefly looked ahead to the match against Rio Ave: "It’s going to be difficult. In away games, Sporting go 2-0 up and things never seem to be wrapped up... But with Sporting playing before Benfica, it may actually be a good thing, because the team behind ends up putting pressure on the one in front.

In conclusion, the commentator also addressed the recent renewal of Rui Borges: "If the renewal had already been sorted a few months ago, I think nothing was going to change, otherwise it could create instability in the team. Even despite the recent results, the renewal had to be carried through to the end precisely because of that and not only that [...] otherwise the players would feel that the board has no confidence in the coach and that would be bad. Rui Borges’ renewal had to happen".

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