Being a portuguese from Lisbon, I am a great fan of Sporting Clube de Portugal. Over the recent years, the Club has been directed by some awful chairmen. The consequence is a long walk through the desert, with only 2 national leagues won over the last 20 years, the last one in 2002. Even worse, the Club was left on the verge of finantial breakdown, and that pretty much the scenario that the new chairman, Bruno de Carvalho, wants to fight this season, the first one after the worst league placemente in the history of Sporting. The situation is really complicated.
"Due to the finantial dificulties Sporting is facing, we need to hire a newcomer to manage the main squad. However, we didn't pick just about any manager. David is a Sporting fan since the day he was born, and has deep knowledge of anything related to the Club. During his whole life, he observed football matches, attended to Sporting training and had an internship at Campomaiorense, a team affiliated to Sporting. We have great trust in this pick, and we'll give him time to work and lead Sporting back to the top. The lion is waking up" - these were the words President Bruno de Carvalho used to present David Oliveira, new Club manager for the season.
Managerial Press Conference
"It is true that there's not much money available, but one also has to consider that Sporting has one of the best youth academies in the world. I will take advantage of that while building the squad. Not only will we have young quality playing, but also we will be able to gain some € selling them along the seasons."
"Realistically speaking, we are outsiders in the fight for the title. However, our history demands that we play every match to win. So, our minimum will be the 3rd place, meaning the qualification for the Champions League, but we will face each match as it was our last. Only like that can we aim to the top".
Next update: Squad, tactics and transfer movement.