Sporting Braga 2 Sporting CP 4

S.C. Braga v Sporting CP 

Sunday November 10th, 2024

Estádio Municipal de Braga

Matchday 11

The Warm Up

According to Opta since the arrival of Ruben Amorim as Sporting coach on March 4th, 2020, Sporting have the highest win percentage of any team across Europe's top 10 leagues. In this his final game as Sporting coach it seems fitting that he returns to Braga, the club whom Sporting paid €10m for his services. He signed off his last game at the Estádio José Alvalade on Tuesday night with a 4-1 win over Manchester City in the Champions League, can he deliver one final victory before he departs the shores of Portugal to take over the reigns of Manchester United?

230 matches, 164 wins, 33 draws and 33 losses with his league win percentage standing at an incredible 71% averaging 2.3 points per game. For Sporting he has delivered two league titles, two Taça da Ligas and a Supertaça all before he turns 40 years of age on January 27th of next year. If you'd questioned the sense of paying €10m for the services of an unproven coach at the time you're certainly not questioning it now especially given United have paid the same fee to secure his services. As Bros once sang 'I owe you nothing, nothing at all.'

In recent seasons as a fixture, Sporting vs Braga has resulted in some of the most one sided encounters going; December 2022 in the Taça da Liga, February 2023 and February 2024 in the Liga all finished 5-0 at the Alvalade. Amorim is undefeated away to his previous employers at the Estádio Municipal de Braga. In September 2023 the two sides drew 1-1 and in August 2022 in the season's first game it finished 3-3 with Sporting haven taken the lead 3 times in the game. August 2021 Sporting won 2-1 and April 2021 they won 1-0. Last season's Taça da Liga defeat 1-0 to Braga whilst technically away was played on neutral ground in Leiria. I'm still scratching my head as to how Sporting lost that semi final. They were certainly hindered by the loss of several key players to the African Cup of Nations but even still it was their love affair with the woodwork in the first half that ultimately cost them the chance at lifting another trophy against Estoril a few days later. Still beggars can't be choosers as they say and a second title win I think was consolation enough for the disappointment suffered. 

It was a somewhat surreal start for the season for Braga. New coach Daniel Sousa was sacked after just four games in charge. Four games I might add in which he was unbeaten with two wins and two draws in all competitions. His dismissal saw the return of Carlos Carvahal to the helm. Also departing was forward Simon Banza to Tranzonspor on loan where subsequently he's scored 6 goals in 7 appearances. Banza was the club's leading goalscorer last season with 21 in 28 and for a long time was neck and neck with Gyökeres in the race to be top goalscorer in Portugal. His replacement El Ouazzani has scored 4 in 10 appearances by way of comparison. The loan of Banza to Turkey mirrors that of Osimen from Napoli to Galatasaray in many ways and Turkey's gain is Portugal's loss because I rate him highly and always thought he played well against Sporting. I'm not sure what went on behind the scenes with Banza and whether there is a way back to Braga for him but I'd happily take him as a replacement for Gyökeres in the summer. 

It was a busy summer transfer window for Braga with 11 new faces in through the doors and 14 departures. Currently unbeaten in 4 their last defeat came at home to Bodø/Glimt in the Europa League. In the Liga they've kept 5 clean sheets and boast the 4th best defensive record conceding 0.7 goals per game on average. They occupy 4th in the table, ten points behind Sporting. Their record stands as having won 6, drawn 2 and lost 2. Goal difference plus ten, goals for 17 and goals against 7. That compared to Sporting's current record of 10 wins, scoring 35 and conceding just 3. Estrela became only the 3rd club this season in the Liga to score against Sporting in a 5-1 loss last time out which saw Gyökeres score four, something apparently called a poker in Portugal which I've never heard of. Every day is a school day as they say. 

If you're reading this and are new to Portuguese football and have never seen the Estádio Municipal de Braga, home of Sporting Braga, it's well worth looking up. Created as one of the venue's for Euro 2004 it sits on a mountainside and was created by levelling down a former quarry pit located on the Monte Castro. The stadiums only two stands sit adjacent to the length of the pitch and despite not having stands behind either goal as you'd traditionally find in other stadia around the world it still holds an impressive 30,286 people. Its nickname A Pedreira is an obvious one, translating literally as the quarry. The build cost totalled €108.1 million, a quite literal large chunk of which came through the cost of the small explosions used to get rid of the granite. The two stands naturally sit amongst the remaining granite so when I try my annual joke about Braga being in-between a rock and a hard place at least some of you may now have a reference point as to where that bad joke comes from. If you're reading this going yeah we got it already thanks then I'm sorry. Maybe pay for a subscription to the Athletic instead. 

Futebol is a funny old game, you don't always get what you deserve. I have to be honest after Tuesday night and say that Sporting got battered by City at points in the first half. Yes granted it could have been a very different half had Gyökeres not spurned his one on one with Ederson in the 7th minute but inexplicably he did and had City taken their chances it could easily have finished the same scoreline in reverse. The opening two minutes of the second half will go down in Sporting folklore in the same way as the two minutes at the Estádio Do Dragão away to Porto last season where Gyökeres turned around a 2-0 deficit in the Clássico into a 2-2 draw with goals in the 87th and 88th minute. I think someone said it took Sporting 19 seconds from the restart of the second half to make it 2-1 against City. Amorim's men then promptly charged back down the pitch and were awarded the penalty which Gyökeres would eventually convert to make it 3-1. I'm still wondering if I'll wake up and discover I've had the world's longest dream sequence where I dreamt the win and then my three working days after and find I'm going to wake up and find we've still got to play them. Let's hope not hey readers. Well unless I've managed to keep a few City fans as new readers. I doubt it but you never know. Stranger things have happened like erm Sporting 4 Manchester City 1. 

So farewell to Amorim. I'll start at a point all football writers will be using so I'll apologise in advance; Tversky and Kahneman. No? Just me? OK then….

The Godfathers of behavioural economics Amos Tversky and Daniel Kahneman when debating any given subject would defend their opposing positions one day and then swap sides and defend the position they had vehemently opposed the previous day. How can you make an informed choice on a subject if you don't see both points of an argument? I tell you this because I could easily defend and attack Amorim's record at Sporting. I'm not being lemon when I write that. I deliberately don't edit these posts to make myself appear clever after the Lord Mayor's Show. You can all go back twelve months and read what I wrote about him before he went onto win the title last season and it wasn't flattering for large parts of the early season. It would definitely have included the words Emperor's New Clothes and even after delivering two title wins I'm still not convinced by him. I know that sounds ridiculous to write but I believe there is merit to the statement especially when you factor that the Liga has only ever been won by five clubs and two of those five were one offs. Every other title other than those won by Belenenses and Boavista have been won by the big three of Sporting, Porto or the dirty pigeons and I'd be kidding myself if we were actually the number one club of those three. Compared to the other two we, are the also rans. Discount Porto and Benfica, then Sporting compared to every other Portuguese side suddenly we look like Real Madrid. The multi club model of ownership is bringing more investment into the Portuguese game and the gap in the middle is widening to the bottom clubs but even so the fact remains that the likelihood of a Braga, Vitória or a Famalicão being crowned champions anytime soon is a very remote one. There are ten sides below them that you can argue that you should take twenty wins from in a season if you're one of the big Portuguese big 3. That alone would make your win percentage as a coach in a season 58.82%. I think even with no coaching experience or qualifications I'd at worst have a season at Sporting with this current squad and finish with a minimum 50% win record. Gyökeres is like having a FIFA cheat code in real life and yet despite this Amorim has won a title with Tiago Tomás up front which is like running the Olympic 100m final starting 30 metres behind. 

You know what? Maybe I save the Amorim chat for after he goes and there's an international break to fill the void with… 

How big is the gap between 1st and 4th place in relative quality of the two sides if in fact there is any at all? Will the dirty pigeons get revenge on Porto after their 5-0 drubbing back in March? It's a Sunday night which sees the top four all involved in two key fixtures. Whatever happens I'm hoping my irrational hatred of Braga isn't given more gravitas. 

In the markets

Sporting Braga 17/4

Draw 10/3

Sporting CP 11/20

Team News

Starting XI

Israel, Reis, Diomande, Debast, Araújo, Bragança, Hjulmand, Quenda, Gonçalves, Gyökeres and Trincão

Substitutes

Kovačević, St Juste, Inácio, Quaresma, Morita, Geny, Esgaio, Simões and Harder 

Just the solitary change from Tuesday nights Champions League triumph as Bragança swaps with Morita in the central pairing which you'd envisage has more to do with game time management with the international break approaching for the Japanese international and MORE travelling. Apologies to the youngster João Simões I keep writing this will be the week he makes his debut and I've put the kiss of death on it so this is the game he definitely won't get any game time. We'll see if that works for the youngster in a more positive manner. 

Can Araújo find the net his his third game on the bounce? Gyökeres has two hat-tricks in his last two games can he…no probably not. Can Sporting at least finish with one more win from the departing Amorim? We're about to find out. 

First half

Sporting wearing green, black and white will attack right to left. Braga get the game underway 

3 Trincão with the step over, continues his run into the box and is bundled out of play by Niakate into the advertising hoardings. The first part was shoulder barge the last part was a deliberate push in the back. Nothing given. 

6 Braga defending with a solid line of 5 around 15 yards from the halfway line. Overall their shape is a 5-3-2 and they look for now incredibly well disciplined 

8 Braga switch to a 3-4-2-1 as they look to transition into attack. Carvahal definitely has his players setup capable of fluid transitions in terms of their shape. They've come to ruin Amorim's send off no doubt about it. 

10 Hjulmand lines up for a shot 20 yards out and Moutinho whips it off his toes. Braga counter attack and the first shot of the night is saved low to Israel's right. Bruma with the effort from a tight angle out right, ball went through the defenders legs but was travelling off target when saved 

12 Gonçalves picks up his second yellow of the season. Not sure whether that was for a foul or him talking his way into the book for his reaction to the referees decision 

14 Trincão with another great bit of skill this time in midfield passes the ball out to Quenda and continues on a curved run past the youngster to provide an outlet for the pass back. Anyone that suggests this side is merely about Gyökeres goals is sadly wrong 

16 I think if you were to look at all the statistics for last season's games this corresponding fixture may have been the one where Sporting had the least attempts on goal. Don't quote me however but if I'm right this is following the same pattern 

17 Moutinho fouls Gonçalves outside the box. Free kick to Sporting 24 yards out centrally 

18 Lay off right to Gyökeres and his shot is blocked and the force of the shot sees the ball out for a throw in 

19 GOAL Braga 1 Sporting CP 1. Farcical defending from Sporting as they fail to clear their lines. Debast receives the ball two yards from the goal line hooked his clearance straight to Horta who couldn't miss at the far post. Gift wrapped. 

22 Gonçalves pulls up. That's his night done. He knew instantly and put his hand up and makes his way straight off the pitch and down the tunnel. Sporting down to ten men. Why he didn't go down is anyone's business to allow time for a substitute to come on.

25 ➡️⬅️ Finally the ball goes out of play and Geny replaces Gonçalves. Presumably Araújo pushes further forward into the role vacated 

28 It's always unfair to maybe suggest one side wants it more but if it was a correct assumption then Braga are the side who fit the bill more right now in the opening third of the game 

29 Reis side foots a shot from 8 yards straight at Matheus. His blushes are spared as the offside flag was up. 

33 Braga are playing like a pack of bloodhounds. Any sniff of the ball and they're on it. It's going to take a gargantuan effort to keep it up for 90 minutes

36 Six efforts on goal in total this corresponding fixture following up from my earlier point. I'm going to trust my memory is correct that it was the lowest total of any Sporting game last campaign

37 Ferreira shown the yellow for a wild swing at Gyökeres. He goes down clutching his leg and the Sporting nation must have held its collective breath there before jointly breathing out a sigh of relief as he gets up 

38 This I think was probably always going to be a game more suited to Morita than Bragança. I'd be amazed if we don't see that change in the second half. 

40 Quenda ends up on a heap far right. Free kick awarded. I'm not sure that was a foul and not simply a case of losing his footing

40 Braga celebrating every challenge won like they've scored a goal as Araújo tackled and the ball goes out for a throw in

42 Gyökeres wide left finds Araújo open in the box but his shot hits the side netting. His reaction is one of a player who suddenly realised how much time and space he had 

44 GOAL Braga 2 Sporting CP 0. It's all gone Pete Tong at the back again. The ball was one on the centre spot from Bragança, quick transition, pass from Bruma to Horta, his effort flies up off Israel and despite the best efforts on the line by the defender carries on into the net. Back to my point seven minutes ago about Bragança…

Plus two indicated

47 Fernandes shown the yellow for a foul on Gyökeres

Half time

Braga 2 Sporting CP 0

That Sporting CP go in at half time with an XG of 0.06 and 2-0 down probably tells you all you need to know about that half. They were bullied off every ball, allowed no space and time, basically what Sporting did to City in the second half on Tuesday night. Yes you can say Braga's goals carried an element of fortune but that's not to say they weren't deserved. For the first Quenda was bullied off the ball at the far post when the cross came in and what Debast was thinking with his clearance only he will know. For the second Bragança goes down theatrically thinking he's going to get the free kick but it's not a foul. Israel got a leg to the final shot and was unfortunate in that the ball could have gone anywhere and it was like a magnet towards the net. 

This has always been my complaint about Amorim's teams. When a side turns the thumbscrews they crumble. They don't like being bullied. So far this season we've seen a side who won't give up and unlike in previous seasons when you'd maybe have given up all hope I won't write them off just yet. They've got one hell of a mountain to climb though. Oh they're on a mountain already aren't they. Well they've a mountain to climb on top of the one they're already on. I've been reminded of why I have an irrational hatred of Braga. Let's have a reminder of why I love this Sporting side.

Second half 

➡️⬅️ Debast replaced by St Juste 

Sporting get us back underway. 

47 How Bragança is still on the pitch is anyone's guess. At the moment I can't tell you a man of the match from a Sporting perspective but I can tell you the worst player. 

49 I asked the question a few weeks back of how this side reacts when punched in the mouth. At the moment it's not looking great. 

50 Quenda with the nutmeg then set Gyökeres away. The keeper had to come 26 yards out to clear the ball. Matheus legs go like he's a teenage girl never been kissed before. Pulls a few funny faces after treatment. Nothing wrong with you man 

52 Diomande booked. He swung an arm at Horta who clipped him from behind. Assistant that side quickly raised his flag. 

53 Shot of Amorim fannying around with some buttons on a board. Try bringing on Morita so we might win a ball in midfield 

54 Finally Morita and Harder taking their last instructions on the bench 

55 Ferreira has been winding Araújo up all game. You know which one was the teacher's pet who always grassed and who the naughty kid was at school. ➡️⬅️ Araújo replaced by Harder and finally Morita on for Bragança 

56 El Ouzzani shown a yellow for a foul. 

57 GOAL Braga 2 Sporting CP 1. Corner ball found St Juste unmarked on the edge of the six yard box and his header cannoned off the far post and back to… Morita… who tapped it home

59 So close to 2-2. Geny flashes a ball across the six yard box but just a yard in front of Gyökeres who threw himself at the ball. 

62 Replay of a rare celebration from Amorim on the bench when the goal went in. He's still coach for another half hour

63 Sporting definitely looks better for the double change. You're not going to push Harder off the ball as easy out on the left and we know how good Morita is. 

64 Morita tidies up effortlessly in midfield for the second time in under a minute. I suggested it would be hard to maintain pressure for a full 90 minutes by Braga and it's starting to show that way now for the home side. If they get it to 2-2 you can believe they could turn it into 3-2. 

67 Oliveira booked for a foul on Gyökeres. Home side are having to resort to dirty tactics now as the Swede was clotheslined. They're hanging on. It wouldn't surprise me to see a red flashed at some point 

70 Twenty minutes of Amorim's coaching career to go with Sporting. He's not lost a game here as coach of the Lions remember 

71 Sporting go close as a long range effort is pushed away to safety by Matheus. Geny with the shot, it clipped the bottom of a defender's boot as it was going towards the far post. 

75 Braga are still hanging on but not by much. 

76 Inácio takes his last instructions from Amorim on the sidelines. 

79 ➡️ ⬅️ Change made as Inácio comes on for Reis. Time wasting has started. Hjulmand booked for pointing it out in a manner unbecoming of a gentleman 

80 GOLAZO Braga 2 Sporting CP 2. Hjulmand with a contender for Sporting goal of the season, almost takes the net off as he lets fly into the top left hand corner. That was special. That must have been from 27 or 28 yards

83 Trincão taken out by Moutinho. Sporting smell a winner. Diomande just gets a toe to the ball and sends it goalwards from 16 yards 

84 Trincão turns inside the box and goes past two players but the ball is hoofed into the far stand before he can get a shot away. 

85 St Juste goes through the back of Bruma. Believe me when I write Braga are in no hurry to take this. 

87 Have the script writers left us one more twist in the Amorim era?

88 GOAL Braga 2 Sporting CP 3. Yes, yes they do. Harder turns and fires low into the bottom right hand corner from 24 yards. He holds a finger up to the home crowd in celebration hushing them. 

Plus five indicated 

Right gentleman you've done the hard work don't shoot yourselves in the foot. Two perfect substitutions with Morita and Harder. Sporting lost the physical battle in the opening 45 and won it in the second 

+1 Martinez yellow

+2 Huge roar as Hjulmand launches the ball into the far stand 

+3 Amorim screams 'come on' clearly practising his English

+3 GOAL Braga 2 Sporting CP 4. Harder proves his first was no fluke as he slots it past Matheus from 22 yards. Wow. I think I snapped my vocal chords with his first and have thrown my arm out with his second 

+6 Final whistle goes. It's all over for Amorim as he makes his way to congratulate his players and they join in one large huddle. Thank you mister. It's been emotional. Played eleven, won eleven. He takes the applause of the travelling fans. What a turn around. Carvahal your boys took one hell of a beating that half. 

Full time 

Sporting Braga 2 Sporting CP 4

The final word 

There is every chance that as good as this Sporting side is they won't go on to win the title this season. But you best believe if you want to take the title away from this group of players you're going to have to quite literally wrench it from their grasp.

Amorim got his selection all wrong and that showed in the opening 45. The possession statistics will say one thing, the eye will tell you the real story. I really fucking hate Braga but that doesn't mean I won't give them credit and in the opening 45 they were magnificent. The way they held their shape, effortlessly transitioned in between defence and attack was a joy to behold. They bossed the midfield, didn't allow Sporting anytime on the ball, always snapping away at the heels like a small terrier you just couldn't shake off. This Sporting side however is something we've not seen before. They don't know when they're beaten. They licked their wounds at half time, they didn't panic, kept chipping away, made the right changes in personnel and when they went in for the kill they did it like they were in an episode of the Day of the Jackal. Braga simply didn't know what had hit them from long range. 

Sporting needed muscle and they needed nous in midfield and they got both with the introduction of Morita and Harder. The succession plan is of course for the youngster to take over from Gyökeres in the summer. The danger is someone comes in waving their chequebook looking to sign him as well. He looks like we've been playing science in a lab and cloned the big Swede. If we know already who replaces Gyökeres then who replaces Harder? They spent a summer trying to woo the Greek guy whose form has dropped off a cliff by all accounts and Harder had quite literally fallen into their laps. Sometimes the gods keep on smiling down on you. 

The title may well come down to injuries. Who can keep their squad out of the treatment room and at the moment Sporting can't do it with Gonçalves surely looking at another four to six week layoff. As soon as one comes back another is lost. It's an utterly ridiculous scenario right now, a little bit of history repeating. 

Braga fans will claim Sporting got away with one but they didn't. Braga couldn't keep up the effort for the full 90 minutes. In the end they were resulting to dirty tricks. Rotating the yellow cards that were inevitably going to come their way for a succession of fouls. It was all they had left in their locker. Yes their goals came gift-wrapped but that doesn't matter. They took them and they deserved their lead. That XG again I mentioned at half time for Sporting - 0.06. How do Sporting react when punched in the mouth? Well on this showing they get you to the floor and stamp on your head repeatedly until you're out for the count and the police have to be called in for a massacre of epic proportions. 

Rarely do you ever see Ruben Amorim anything but calm on the touchline. He's the man that crouches. Takes it all in. Doesn't go wild with celebrations but this was his final swansong and all that reserve went out the window tonight. He got the big calls almost all spot on in the second 45. Bragança shouldn't have taken the field after half time but other than that he got everything else right. 

And so he now departs. Whether he's a success in Manchester we don't know and frankly I don't care. He's written his name into Sporting legend. The little Benfica boy grew up to be his sides nemesis. He grew to be loved by us all and we say obrigado Ruben. Thank you for the titles, for providing the heartbeat to this team that will carry on pumping. For showing that its not about the money you spend but reminding the game that its about getting in players with the right mentality and skill sets. That you can create a cohesive unit from a succession of players who've not arrived from well known clubs. 

Amorim will face a scrutiny that no other manger in the world will face. If there's the next Geovany Quenda or Nuno Mendes in the United academy you best believe he'll unearth them and unleash them on an unsuspecting public. It's clickbait to suggest he will come knocking on Sporting's door in the summer. Amorim cares little whether you're 16 or 17. What he'll need is time, not money. Whether he gets it really is anyone's guess. England is not Portugal. Problems aren't always solved by money. Anyways this isn't a United blog and yes this is Amorim's baby but he's put it up for adoption now. He's not a traitor for leaving. He's trying to do what millions of people do every day around the world and better themselves. Bonne chance Ruben.

I've had my swipe at Bragança. It's rare I criticise Diomande but he knew what he was doing when he swung his arm and got booked and some referees might have seen it as a red. Araújo kept biting and got taken off at exactly the right point. He had that red mist descending. Debast… dear god what goes through that kids head sometimes? He's like a defective toy at Christmas or a knock off Chinese version of the real thing. That's three massive errors this season. If Inácio is our Harry Maguire then Debast looks a shoe in to take that mantle if Gonçalo departs. When it goes wrong, boy does it go wrong. 

Hjulmand is the not cut from the same cloth as say a Pahlinha but since he's been given the captains armband he's gone to a new level. I thought last season's coverage was over the top but this season I can see the player and what a cool finish. If you want him now you're going to have to pay full price. This is a midfielder from little old Lecce. Losing Amorim and Viana is one thing, losing our scouting department would really worry me. 

Morita coming on was so obvious. He knits this side together so so well to use a Pep analogy. Amazing spatial awareness, he's grown as a player so much and is probably the most underrated player at Sporting and in Portuguese football in general. He doesn't have to be the enforcer any more. He can do what he does best and that's do the simple stuff exceptionally well. These are the players who you need to win titles. 

Gyökeres as we know when he's not scoring is making the runs that make the space for someone else to have the opportunity to grab the glory. Trincão as always is a joy to watch in full flow but he looks in need of a rest. He's linking up well with Quenda and his confidence is growing by the game. Had it not been for the second half contribution of Morita and Harder he'd have gotten my man of the match. 

Both of Harder's finishes were top drawer and he was a nuisance but I can't look past Morita for my man of the match. Was there in the right place to pull the first goal back and everywhere I looked after that there he was like a gremlin who had been splashed in water and we suddenly had three or four of him on the pitch. 

With three minutes to go I was questioning whether the script writers were going to give us the big finale. My god did they. So remember the league numbers pre-Perreira. No pressure João. Played 11. Won 11. Goals for 39. Goals against 5. He's been handed the keys to Mercedes Executive. Try not to crash it dear boy.