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Sporting Champions League post-mortem
Gallant effort or should have done better?
When the draw was made for this year’s Champions League, not many outside Lisbon would have given Sporting a chance to progress ahead of Manchester United and Roma.
After being paired with Inter Milan and Bayern Munich last season, it seemed fate had once again transpired to bar Sporting’s chances of advancing from the group stage for the first time in the club’s history. And so it proved.
But although the statistics show the final gap between Sporting and Roma was 4 points, Paulo Bento’s team can rightly feel aggrieved it is the Italians, and not the Portuguese club who progress to the next round.
Manchester United, brimming with many of the planet’s finest footballers, were always going to be hot favourites to win the group. Hence the double header against Roma was no doubt identified by Sporting as the key to obtaining second place.
Freak own goal
Anyone who watched the two matches between the teams from the Italian and Portuguese capitals will surely surmise that the Lions deserved far more than the paltry one point, especially after the clash at Alvalade when only a freakish own goal in the last minute tied the scores after a vibrant and largely dominant display by Sporting.
Yet perhaps blaming Sporting’s demise on a heavy dose of bad luck is too simplistic. Sporting’s biggest asset last season was their rock-solid defence, so much so that they finished the year with fewer goals conceded than any other top-flight team in all the major European leagues. But this campaign the rearguard was all too easily breached with an alarming number of individual errors largely to blame.
At the other end of the pitch, an over-reliance on Romagnoli for creativity and Liedson for goals was patently obvious. With the exception of the final match against a demoralised Dynamo Kiev team, apart from Liedson only defenders found the net.
On balance, Sporting fans can point to the fact they were far from outclassed by one of the strongest Manchester United teams in memory – where only the genius of Sporting youth product, Cristiano Ronaldo, proved the difference – and that they bettered last year’s performance in the competition, suggesting they are ready to make a bigger impact next time round.
Did Sporting do themselves justice or should they have achieved more in this season’s Champions League? Give your opinion using the form below.
Related: Sporting 3-0 Dynamo Kiev - match report
Related: Sporting 3-0 Dynamo Kiev - match reaction
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13/05/2008 23:52
Dave (Chorley) Sporting are a great example of how NOT to run a football club, and we are NOT poor. Top rank in Ptg for 3/4 century, most enviable following ... 53 chances to win a top European club title, 53 to place; never placed. Single isolated appearance in the lesser European finals in how many tries ?? Lost count. Since 1955, played mainly 2nd fiddle, no, 3rd fiddle, to the other top clubs. A 74-year jinx ?? No: a systemic, persistent, deficit of overall & technical leadership & managerial skill, else we would have had closer to our fair share of national and international success. Lack of vision ?? Too short-term a view from above, no strategy ?? Or something subtler, lack of institutional will to win. The massive talent over the decades must not have been given the wherewithal to victory ... not consistently enough, at any rate. I’ll add: like sex, football is mostly in your head. The winner is the one with the greater psychological strength at the moment.
01/03/2008 20:22
hey vasco why dont u shove ur opinion up ur a$$......sporting do play the best soccer in portugal PERIOD.moron
14/12/2007 13:40
Sporting, in my opinion, got more than what they deserved, which is a spot in the Uefa Cup. There's no doubt that the organization produces great, young talent and we're unlucky against Roma at home, but for all the pomp and circuumstance, it's put up or shut up. All this talk about how they are the one team in Portugal who plays great football is bullspit. Stop crying and giving yourself accolades that you haven't earned, and just play the game. I give Sporting one round in the Uefa Cup and then out.
14/12/2007 12:06
As an ardent Manchester United fan, I thought I'd come on this thread to give my considered view of a club all United fans appreciate. I think Sporting are a fine example of how to run a football club that is not one of the richest in the world. Your record at producing top quality home grown talent is second to none, but what has particularly impressed me is the way you approach matches, sticking to your neat passing philosophy whatever the opposition.
I definitely think Sporting were on a par with Roma and a bit unlucky not to go through. I guess the Italians had a bit more nous when it mattered. But I think, like the author of the article intimates Sporting are gradually finding their feet at this level and hopefully next year you will progress.
I think the defender Polga, Moutinho and Veloso in midfield and Liedson are top class and deserve a good run in the competition.
Good luck with the rest of the season, and an eternal thank you for helping to nurture and then selling us Ronnie!!!
14/12/2007 00:43
Sporting are clearly weaker, both financially and in terms of quality, than United and Roma. Most impartial observers would have predicted them finishing third because they got a tough group. They gave it a good shot and were unlucky not to beat Roma at home, so I think Sporting can mark it down as a good campaign. A little more luck both against Roma at Alvalade and United at Old Trafford (remember Liedson's disallowed goal) and maybe it would have been a different story.
14/12/2007 00:11
Sporting finished where they deserved. Big clubs advance. Sporting will never be a big club until they STOP selling their talented youngsters. Stop developing talent for the rest of Europe and then they will advance, until then they deserve to bow out early. Its a shame - the best academy in Europe yet they can never advance beyond the group stage.
13/12/2007 13:44
sporting should have qualified if they had avoid defeat and a draw against man u and roma
13/12/2007 12:24
If Sporting had kept Nani, Ricardo, Caneira and Tello they would have done much better, maybe even got to the final stages... Sporting directors must understand they have to pay their best players more money so they do not leave. Instead of spending millions on Purovic, Stojkovic, Izmalov, Vukcevic they were better to offer that money to the four players i listed at teh start to stay.
Do not misunderstand me. I think the new guys may do good, specially Izmalov and Vukcevic but the others were top players and already knew all about Sporting and there teamates.
But maybe we can do well again in the Uefa Cup. Força Leões!!!