Famalicão 0 Sporting CP 1

Famalicão v Sporting CP
April 16^th, 2024
Estádio Municipal 22 de Junho
Matchday 29

The Warm Up

If Sportinguista’s in general are nervous ahead of tonight’s rescheduled game away to Famalicão then it’s probably fair to suggest the head of the regions Polícia de Segurança Pública (PSP) is probably shitting themselves and has everything crossed that Sporting come away with all 3 points even if he’s a fan of the neighbours. The fixture was originally scheduled for February 3rd and at that junction Famalicão had recorded a single win in all competitions in their previous nine games. There’s no certainty in suggesting they’d merely have rolled over and had their bellies tickled but a betting man or woman would have had their money on an away win I'm sure. Famalicão now go into this fixture with one defeat in six, Saturday night saw them come away with a 2-2 draw away to Porto in which they led twice and before that they recorded back to back victories. This is a Famalicão team in a very different place to that two and a half months ago. That original game was cancelled because of a strike by PSP members over pay and conditions which meant the safety of those at the game couldn’t be guaranteed and the forced postponement. History has taught us many things, one of the biggest being people are always eager when things go wrong to have someone to point the finger of blame at and should Sporting fail to win it will only be pointed in one direction and the worry is it will turn into something worse. As the Kaiser Chiefs famously sang – I predict a riot. If they couldn’t guarantee the safety of fans first time around they’ll run the ire of irate fans and have their work out how to guarantee their own safety if Sporting lose.

Gyökeres goal drought continues. A man on a mission in the second half against Gil Vicente to add to his season’s tally, it was his header which cannoned off the bar and then in off goalkeeper Andrew for the fourth in the 4-0 win which sent Sporting temporarily seven points clear. Trincão by comparison came away with a brace and will have been disappointed not to have completed his second hat-trick for the Lisboa giants. Gonçalves in his second game back from injury claimed the assist for Diomande to score and contributed well. His performances seem to be peaking at exactly the right time with eight games of the season remaining in all competitions. Fresneda returned from his lengthy lay off and Koindredi added to his season’s tally of minutes on the pitch as he continues his integration into a winning side following his January signing.

Off the field speculation continues unabated especially in relation to Amorim and Gyökeres’ future. The irony is not lost on me that the post for the cancelled game https://outsideofthepride.blogspot.com/2024/02/famalicao-a.html focused heavily on the closing of the transfer window during which not a single player of those under constant media speculation departed. So here we go again with round 2. Despite confirmation from the mister and club alike that no talks have taken place with Liverpool, the English media especially have his contract already signed. Not bad for a man who when Jürgen Klopp announced his decision to leave at the end of the season was a massive 14/1 to be named the next manager. Gyökeres agent this week has gone on record stating that his clients future is linked to that of whether Amorim stays. I imagine the club hierarchy have been on the phone to remind his agent that his future is dependent on his buyout clause being met and that under contract if the club chooses not to sell then he’s going nowhere. You wonder what goes through the tiny little minds of agents and why they go on record at any point like this, let alone when his client is chasing down a possible title win, cup win and golden boot. It's highly disrespectful to a club who gave him a chance when no one in the Premier League was prepared to pay the money to take him from the championship. I'm not doubting his quality, his hunger and desire, that will to win et al amongst all his positive qualities, but if it’s a summer of Viktor v Victor then Napoli’s Osimhen will surely have the upper hand. Interestingly both players are both 25 and to be fair have inflated release clauses in their contract but you’d imagine that the Nigerian will continue to have the bigger impact during his career hav’ng already helped Napoli to the Serie A title last season. Gyökeres could do worse than get another season under his belt with Sporting, hopefully gain some valuable experience in the Champions League and then seek a move next summer if he should choose to do so. No player is bigger than the club and equally no move comes with a guarantee of success for the player and that they'll continue to be en vogue. For Amorim in particular you have to wonder if he looks at Alonso and his decision to count himself out of the running for the Liverpool job and think he clearly knows something. Somewhere in the blue side of Manchester you can hear the Imperial March starting after Liverpool and Arsenal both lost Sunday afternoon and if you were serious about taking a club to a potential title challenge in England you’d surely wait until Pep leaves Manchester City. For all the hype and bluster surrounding the German Klopp will depart with a Premier League, Champions League, FA Cup and two league cups in a period which by his own admission has burnt him out hence why he's looking to take a season's sabbatical from the game. Amorim in a lesser period has won a title, three Taça da Liga’s and a Supertaça and could potentially add a second league title and a Taça de Portugal by the end of this season to his honours. Not yet 40 he’s got many years ahead of him as a coach and time is on his side for when he c’ooses to take a step to a higher level. Or maybe Mrs Amorim will simply go you can fuck off if you think I’m moving to that shit hole. Lisboa or Liverpool as a home to live in? That’s not even a question is it.

The money markets

Famalicão 9/1 = 10% probability chance of winning
Sporting 1/3 = 75% probability chance of winning 

Team News

In goal it’s the return of Antonio Adán. I’m sorry Franco lad but that’s got rid of a few butterflies that have been sat in my stomach since about 10am this morning as does the return of Coates into the back three as captain. Not that Diomande ever worries me to be fair as he makes way. Nuno Santos returns from suspension on the left to replace Esgaio. I can chuckle writing that now. Gonçalves drops back into midfield and Hjulmand returns from suspension with Bragança and Morita the two to make way. Paulinho starts up front otherwise as you were for Friday night.

No it's not the return of Adán. They've updated the starting XI. That's just fucking mean Fotmob. That’s pissed me off more than when they showed seven minutes of Benfica TV rather than our game one round.

First Half

Sporting attacking right to left in the opening 45

3 Free kick to Sporting in a dangerous position on the right as Trincão is fouled. Poor delivery by Gonçalves sees Santos chasing for it wide left and he can only cross the ball back to the keeper

7 Gyökeres gets his head on a cross from the right in the six yard box but can only steer it over the bar

13 Bragança rifles a shot from 24 yards which crashed onto the bar, hits the keeper on the back but unlike Friday night doesn’t roll into the net and a grateful Junior pounces on the ball to keep the scores level

17 Fair to suggest there’s a few nerves out there as another Sporting pass goes astray. I’d have been as much use on the pitch as rocking horse shit on your prize roses with my own nerves so for now I’ll forgive the odd misplaced pass

19 GOAL Famalicão 0 Sporting CP 1. It wasn’t pretty. Gonçalves with a first touch like a trampoline to carry himself into the box then hits it 12 yards out through the legs of a defender and finally it bounced off the keeper’s foot and into the net. They all count

27 Free kick 2 yards outside the 18 yard box on the left flank as Gyökeres is hacked down. Again a poor set piece comes to nothing

32 Diomande throws himself at a cross to the back post but it goes agonisingly over his head to safety

37 Corner to Famalicão only mentioned because you could see the PSP presence in the far corner. Not on fucking strike tonight clearly as they stand together en mass

40 Diomande shown a yellow for a foul on the edge of the area. Firstly it hits the Famalicão player on the hand and then he runs into an outstretched arm and makes a fucking three course meal out of it

42 Bragança follows him into the book. Again the slightest of touches to the side of the face. This is frankly fucking embarrassing from the home side

Plus one indicated

+1 Hjulmand escapes a booking as he refuses to let go of the ball and then throws it away. Referee just has a few words. That was silly from the Dane

Half time

Famalicão 0 Sporting CP 1

Little to choose between the two sides albeit Famalicão are yet to even register a shot. I don’t know what the modern parlance is now but growing up that would have been described as going straight to DVD. I’m not sure what I fear most in the second 45; the possibility of an equaliser or going down to ten men? Every time a Famalicão player feels any sort of contact, especially to the face they’ve gone down like they’re in a Pornhub upload and Sporting players just need to switch on to it and watch where they place their arms when fending off the opposition players.

It seems crazy to suggest but I'd actually consider taking Gyökeres off at hal’ time and replacing him with Paulinho. I don’t know what’s up with the Swede. Is it physical, is it mental? Either way he’s off the pace at present but you’d have to be a brave man to do it. Nuno Santos has impressed in via defensive role to his credit though still looks short in the attacking sense. St Juste is warming up with Quaresma.

Second half

Quaresma comes on for Diomande. The announcer shouts Fama to encourage the home fans which in English sounds like farmer. I’d like to see them play against Ipswich, Norwich or one of the Bristol clubs in pre season. He’d get a volley of oo-aahs back to confuse him.

51 Someone’s going to have to ask Coates to turn out his pockets before he gets on the coach home tonight because so far that’s where Jhonder Cadiz has been all game

54 Superb diving tackle from Quaresma. Let’s hope that lifts his team mates in a rare show of quality in the opening hour of this tawdry game

56 Famalicão with their first attempt on goal. I say on goal. More an attack on the huge wooden advertising boards behind it. Topic stands looking sheepish at his poor long range effort

60 Finally some noise from the crowd. It’s been like a library at times tonight

63 You could take any of the front three off right now and I’d not be disappointed. If you were Paulinho or Edwards you’d be stretching like mad in front of Amorim trying to get on

65 Yellow to Cadiz as he fouls Geny to stop a Sporting counterattack near the halfway line

66 Santos fires a shot from the edge of the 18 yard box low past the far post

67 Esgaio, Paulinho and Morita will replace Geny, Gonçalves and Braganca. This game needs a second for Sporting but at present it looks like Christmas will come sooner

68 Nuno Santos as if to prove my point fires over the bar centrally from 20 yards. Makes a change this season usually they’re making me look stupid which isn’t hard to do let’s be fair

70 Gyökeres with a first touch like a trampoline kicks it straight out of touch off his shin. He’s playing on reputation alone tonight. I’d have had him off 25 minutes ago. He’s offering nothing

72 Morita with a double chance. First shot blocked, the follow up bounces off the same defenders head whilst on the floor for a corner

73 Esgaio yellow again for a supposed hand in the face. It’s clearly a tactic being employed by their players. If we lose this I’d fucking test a few jaws and give them something to actually go down clutching their faces for

78 Famalicão captain loses his shit at his fellow defenders who seem oblivious to the fact you can’t be offside from a throw and not one of them is even within five yards of Gyökeres. Yes it’s that sort of night when that’s all I have to write about

79 Cadiz fires a volley from a tight angle which was always going over the goal though it gave the home fans something to cheer

81 The games that shit the Sportinguista’s are doing the Poznan so they don’t have to watch

82 Gyökeres penalised for a shoulder barge. He demonstrates he’s learned some Portuguese as he fires a volley of insults at the player down, his face reddened with rage

85 Israel quick off his line to take the ball off the toes off the onrushing Cadiz

86 Nuno Santos replaced by Fresneda

88 Sporting are defending deep trying to see the game out. This has disaster waiting to happen written all over it

Plus five indicated

+1 Hjulmand shown the yellow card for a foul 25 yards out. Free kick driven straight into the wall and away to safety

+2 Every minute feels more like an hour

+3 Chiquinho dances in between two defenders and then shanks his shot wide of the left post. I can barely watch this

+4 Coates hoofs the ball into the stands. He’s been unmovable all night long

Full time

Famalicão 0 Sporting CP 1

The Final Word

That really was the Braga game from the title winning season on repeat minus going down to ten men. Offensively Sporting were woeful all night. Defensively they were giants with one man standing head and shoulders above all others – can only be one man of the match and that’s to the skipper Seba Coates. He was a fucking colossus for the full 90. Never looked ruffled, barely had to break into a trot his positioning was that great, text book defending from the big man. That for me ranks alongside his heroics against Braga.

In truth the game was fucking awful and that’s being polite. Win pretty, win ugly, it doesn’t matter. Just fucking win. I’ve breathed a sigh of relief, the PSP will have been shitting themselves in the corner and hopefully everyone goes off into the night happy now with no trouble. Seven points clear, the game in hand no longer after a two and a half month wait. In years to come they’ll threaten children with that game. If you don’t eat your dinner I’m going to make you watch all of the Famalicão v Sporting game! Oh mum that’s not fair.

Gyökeres had his worst game in a Sporting shirt. He was off the pace on Friday but still had that sense of hustle and bustle. Tonight he just cut a frustrated figure up front and should have been given some sort of a rest as he now goes five games without a goal. I don’t know if he’s physically burned out or the constant speculation is getting to him or there’s something we don’t know about going on behind the scenes but you can’t keep flogging a dead horse. I wouldn’t want to be the one to tell him he has to come off’but he deserves so’e rest probably more than any other player. In fact every other player has enjoyed some degree of rest this season so he shouldn’t be treated any differently. He’ll be no fucking good to anyone if he pulls up with an injury in training or during a game.

Quaresma had a solid 45 and to be fair you can have no complaints whatsoever about his performance and commitment. Israel has literally had nothing to do for 180 minutes now thank Christ and finally they seem to have woken up to the fact he needs more protection at the back.

I could go on but I won’t. Three points is as all that matters. No one will care about this performance if you write your names into the history books come the end of the season. That’s all that matters.