New-look Sporting Underline Depth Ahead of Mountainous Madrid Task

In the period since, just over a year ago, Jorge Jesus took the monumental decision to pack his bags and took the short hop along the Segunda Circular from Benfica’s Estádio da Luz to Sporting Clube de Portugal’s José Alvalade, life has been full of surprises - and not always pleasant ones. The bombastic coach, who has dominated the Liga in recent years, has been learning that there are ways other than his of finding success in Portuguese football. 

Many, including this column, thought that Jesus had taken the magic formula with him when he decamped 4km east to the Alvalade, especially when Sporting began last season like a runaway train. Instead his replacement at Benfica, Rui Vitória, had far more up his sleeve than anybody, including Jesus, than hitherto suspected. Nine successive Sporting wins to finish the 2015/16 season were not enough to wrestle the title from As Aguias. Benfica remain a tough nut to crack. 

What’s more is that Vitória managed without compromising the club’s European ambitions. Jesus famously - and controversially - believed that it was impossible to go full tilt at both domestic and European glory. The man who filled the gap created by his departure proved otherwise, with Benfica holding firm in defending their title and making a great effort of defying Bayern Munich, albeit ultimately in vain, in the Champions League quarter-finals. 

So Jesus’ task for his sophomore season at the Alvalade is arguably more than the far-from-simple one of delivering a first Liga title since 2002. His burgeoning rivalry with Vitória, which descended into mutual personal attacks via the media last season, means that he could really do with Sporting performing in Europe this season. With a Champions League group containing Real and Borussia Dortmund, it won’t be easy.  

As Sporting defended a 100% Liga record as they welcomed Moreirense to town on Saturday, they certainly had half an eye on Wednesday’s daunting trip to the Bernabéu to face the holders. Bryan Ruiz stayed on the bench for the whole game while after two goals in three minutes early in the second half settled the contest, Jesus was able to give a breather to key midfielder Adrien Silva and wide player Gelson Martins, who has started the season in fine form.  

Moreirense clearly won’t threaten the upper part of the table, despite a solid start to the campaign before Saturday, and were fatally handicapped by the dismissal of Neto before half-time. Yet their coach Pepa put out a team not scared to have a go at Sporting, and the visitors had nine efforts at goal to the home side’s 10.  

If ever there was a good time to face Sporting, even given their perfect start, it was surely now, and Pepa knew it. The turnover of players at the Alvalade has been dizzying, and means that Jesus is still really searching for his best XI. 16 new players have arrived since the January window - young defender Rúben Semedo also returned from a loan at Vitória Setúbal halfway through last season - including 12 this summer alone.  

In this game, the coach gave four players their debuts, not including Arsenal loanee Joel Campbell, who started his first match for the club having debuted in o clássico against Porto before the international break. Of the XI that won at Rio Ave on the corresponding weekend last season, only two started here - Rui Patrício and Adrien. The latter, of course, could have joined Leicester City, as last season’s top scorer Islam Slimani did, during the recently-closed summer transfer window.  

Conversely the sale of João Mário has almost done Jesus a favour, in a strange way. Now the personnel available to him is a more natural fit for 4-4-2, in the image of his fluent, ultra-attacking Benfica side from the 2009/10 season, his glorious debut campaign at the Luz. This was reflected in the middle part of the game as Sporting went for the kill, morphing into what was almost a 2-4-4, as illustrated by the player average position map. That move onto the front foot was aided by having Ezequiel Schelotto and Bruno César, both midfielders by trade, in the full-back positions, though they were rarely in their own half. Sporting commanded 69% of possession and completed 87% of their passes. 

While Gelson again weighed in heavily, scoring the opener, all eyes were trained on Bas Dost, signed from Wolfsburg as the replacement for Slimani. The Netherlands striker will need time to adapt to Sporting’s style - as recognised by Jesus, who said after the game that Dost “played a little bit with his own ideas, and wasn’t in the game much, but he improved in the second half”. Dost’s 24 touches were the lowest number of any of Sporting’s starters, but both his efforts on goal were on target, and the goal which opened his account in Portugal was a wily finish, an improvised poke of the leg after he’d fallen to the turf under a challenge. He will score goals here. 

One on Wednesday night would be nice, too. Campbell, who clearly got the taste for his new role in that cameo against Porto, was the star man here, rating 7.91 with two shots both on target contributing to that, and with Luc Castaignos waiting in the wings for a debut, Sporting have firepower. They will need it to swing the balance of power along the Segunda Circular.

Can Sporting continue their excellent start to the season when they face Real Madrid? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below