THE Sporting travels, at 8:15 pm (Mainland Portugal time) this Thursday, to the Rio Maior Municipal Stadium, where they will face Casa Pia, in the opening game of the tenth round of the I League, which could prove to be fundamental for the continuation (or not) of Rui Borges on the bench.
The victory, in the middle of the week, over MarÃtimo, by 2-1, qualified for the ‘final four’ of the League Cup, but it did not alleviate the pressure on the Mirandelenense, who knows that the margin for maneuver is short, at a time when the lions occupy third place in the table, already nine points behind the leader, FC Porto.
The scenario is urgent, so the Leo coach has no alternative but to present a team at full strength, without being able to afford to think about managing with a view to the match in the fourth round of the Champions League league phase, against Shakhtar Donetsk, which is scheduled for 5:45 pm next Tuesday, at Stamford Bridge.
The former Vitória SC took advantage of the last match to give minutes to some of the least used players in the green and white squad, but, given the circumstances, he has no alternative but to throw in all the ‘heavyweights’, in search of a result that allows him to ensure ‘survival’ in the position.
Zeno Debast, Nuno Santos and Rodrigo Zalazar continue to recover from their respective injuries, meaning they are certain casualties for the duel with the geese. As for the game itself, it will be judged by Miguel Fonseca, assistants João Martins and André Costa, fourth referee Bruno Vieira, VAR Manuel Mota and AVAR Paulo Miranda.
Scroll through the photo gallery and check out Sporting’s likely eleven.
