Player close to call-up and deserved win: Rui Borges after Sporting | OneFootball

Sporting kicked off their Champions League campaign with a 3-1 win over Galatasaray at Alvalade. Rui Borges felt the result was fair and highlighted the team’s response after a difficult start, marked by some nerves and trouble matching the Turks’ intensity. The Sporting coach also stressed the way his players turned things around and eventually showed the quality needed to win, while also saying that Eduardo Quaresma is on the verge of a call-up to the national team.

Analysis

"In the first 20, 25 minutes we had some difficulty matching the opponent’s intensity. We couldn’t connect our play, we misplaced a few passes. We didn’t allow much danger, they scored from a throw into the box, but we couldn’t get our game going, maybe because of some nerves. We knew they were going to press, that they like to dominate, but maybe the team wasn’t quite ready for that intensity. We were below par in the duels. Then we grew in confidence, and the goal was a beautiful collective move. It was important to go into the break level. They didn’t create anything extraordinary in the first half. In the second half we were stronger in the duels. We tried not to press the goalkeeper, but we won a lot of balls and broke dangerously in transition. We got the goal on merit. Zalazar made it 3-1 with a great free-kick, and we had another two or three situations where we could have finished better. In the last five or 10 minutes we were more tired, deeper, but we didn’t let them create any really dangerous chances for our goalkeeper."

What did you say to the players at half-time? The opposing coach complained about the refereeing...

"I’m not going to go there. This is the best club competition in the world. I don’t talk about our league, and I’m not going to talk about the Champions League. It was a fair win for everything we were able to do to get on top of the opponent. The message at half-time was calm and ‘welcome to the Champions League.’ We had to raise the intensity, especially in the duels. We had to connect our play more often, with dangerous, quick players. We had that defined. The team kept growing in confidence and taking it away from the opponent. Then our composure, our individual quality and, above all, our collective quality came to the surface. That was the message before the game. To get big wins in this competition, you need big teams. Today we were a big team."

Why did you make these changes in the starting XI? Was it strategy or squad management?

"It was a bit of both. Some rotation and strategy based on the opponent. I trust the whole team completely, and the players who came on during the game did very well, with a real desire to help. I trust everyone; I was already making some changes last season. We have a squad with many players, they’ve all worked incredibly hard to get opportunities and they will get them."

Can this team do what it did in the Champions League last season? Suárez already has five goals in six games. How many goals do you expect from him?

"I expect a high number. I’m not going to give figures. He’s a great striker. He’s in a good spell, he may go through less good spells, that’s football. Rodrigo is growing. He has understood better what Sporting is, what his teammates are about. He’s going to have a great season, lots of goals. He scored 23 goals last season and he’ll do it again. Last season, by matchday five, he also only had one goal for SC Braga. It will come naturally. He’s a great player. He’s adapting to a different level of demand, to a big club where the demand is to win, where the game requires other things. He’ll improve as a player. He’ll give us what he’s already good at, and improve what he’s less good at. The team gave a good response today. The team is different, the opponents are different. We’ll take it game by game. One thing I know: we’re going to compete. We’re among the best, we really want to be among the best, we’ve done a lot for that, the club has grown to be in this great competition for more years, and consecutively. If we’re here, it’s because we want to compete with the best. Regardless of a less positive result that may happen, the lads know the level of demand that comes with playing in the Champions League, but they are very eager to show themselves and, above all, to keep growing at Sporting."

The team made it 2-1 and kept pushing for another goal. Have you changed that mentality from the start of the season?

"For me there was never any unease. There has been growth. Pre-season is one thing, competitive matches are another. It’s a young team. We understood what we weren’t doing so well in the first few games. We’ve grown, we’re going to be better, and a less successful game can happen. Above all, it’s important to win and grow. The team has grown. The example I gave of Zalazar applies to all the players. The connections are different from last season’s, they need time, no matter how much we train. But the calm is there every day. They like each other, they recognise each other’s value, they respect each other and they work very hard every day. I couldn’t be happier with the group I have and the credit is all theirs. It makes me happy because even today, for example, Silas came on with huge personality. It’s the first time he’s played in the Champions League, he comes from another league, with different demands. And that’s down to all of them, because they really believe. They have the confidence of the person leading them. Other than that, it’s about listening, trying to do it, and the coach takes responsibility for their mistakes, no problem."

Could this result be decisive in the group standings? Why wasn’t Debast an option? What happened to Eduardo Quaresma at the start of the second half?

"Debast was doubtful because of workload management; he’s coming back from a lengthy injury and that extra load might not have been the best decision we could make. On top of that, he got ill and didn’t train. He came to the match and still got on, and did well. Edu had an isotonic drink at half-time and it didn’t sit well with him. He had a great second half and came off because he was tired. It’s important to start well with a team with many players who were beginning to play in the Champions League, in front of our fans, who transmit positive energy from the outside in. It’s hugely important to win in this competition, and it’s important to be strong at home. Every point counts, every goal counts. Above all, I’m very happy that we started with a home win."

We saw a great direct free-kick goal from Zalazar... why isn’t Quaresma more consistent as a starter?

"Rui Borges was the coach under whom Quaresma played the most matches. He does have some consistency. None of them is a guaranteed starter; I have four great centre-backs, and when I pick two it’s hard to leave the other two out. They are four great centre-backs, with different characteristics. Inácio didn’t start the game that well, but he grew into it and had a great second half. It has to do with opportunities, with the strategy for the match. He’s a great player. I have no doubt he’s in line to play for the national team. He started the first games, he played very well. He came out by choice, not because of his quality. I’m a big fan, he knows that. He’s a special boy, different. He’s much more mature. And when that maturity grows just a little more... he is clearly a national-team player."

Sporting looked for more direct play with Suárez in the second half than in the first. What changed?

"Sometimes we have the chance to connect with him earlier. When the opponent presses higher, we know it’s important to get into the second lines before then reaching the first line. That’s what we tried to do. There was more space, there was that passing lane to Luis without him needing to drop deep to get on the ball. We tried to move Zalazar, who was the No. 10, into more central and deeper areas so the centre-back couldn’t follow him. We managed to move into almost a fast-attack process. We gave more width in the second half precisely for that reason, so Rodrigo could stay more inside and deeper to try to gain superiority."

In six games, this ‘new’ Sporting has five wins and one draw. What aspect has pleased you most and what has pleased you least about the team’s play in this first month of competition? Are you waiting for the international break to work on those moments?

"During international breaks I’m left with four or five players, it’s impossible... I lose the players, even the B team ones, who go to the under-19s, under-20s. The break doesn’t really give me much. On one hand I’m happy, they all deserve their national teams and I believe there may be some first call-ups, and I’ll be happy if that happens. Every week I focus on every phase of the game. With this team I can’t even say we’re very good in the attacking process or that we’ll improve the defensive process, or vice versa. We’re far from what we want in any phase of the game. Offensive transition has a lot to do with individual quality, and we have that. In defensive transition the team reacts very well after losing the ball. We are in continuous growth. I’m happy with the response they’ve given so far. I clearly notice improvements in every aspect. Now it’s about keeping that going. It’s important to win, especially in this competition, where it’s hard to maintain a winning run. Maybe it’s easier to get their attention when we win than when we don’t. Maybe they feel more hurt when things don’t go well. When we win, maybe they process the mistake and the correction better. We are always looking to grow. There isn’t a single phase where I can say we’re doing very well. We’re still a long way from what we want for the team."

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