On Tuesday, Sporting travel to Estádio José Alvalade against Borussia Dortmund, for which their opponents represent the first they face against an opposing opponent from a rival UEFA competition for a period now topping three and half years, having struggled hard under various uncertainties relating to changing of guards within those intervening three-year seasons.
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While the Portuguese side remains with home invincibility as a positive sign, the German squad is determined to break its away record that has troubled them.
Sporting always does fantastic in Lisbon, and they get good support at home.
The season for the Portuguese team has been turbulent, with two managerial changes before Rui Borges took charge. Despite all the turmoil, Sporting was able to advance in the Champions League on tiebreaker criteria despite being in a tough group.
Sporting takes its chances in a high-pressure knockout round as usual at José Alvalade, where the team remains unbeaten in its last seven games. The message is clear from the coach: no playing defensively for them. "Sporting will enter every match and competition to win. We want to be competitive; the club and its history demand it."
Another positive indication is that Sporting has already proved it can deliver surprises in this Champions League campaign. The 4-1 demolition of Manchester City in the fourth round sent a strong message: despite its problems, the team can be deadly when given space.
Yet not all of the portents are propitious. This team has struggled to protect leads and, accordingly, have spent more time behind on the scoreboard than any other team that reached this point in the competition. That defensive vulnerability could become a big liability against an opponent that, with all its shortcomings, carries an attacking menace.
Dortmund in rebuild mode and under pressure for results
It will be a voyage to Lisbon filled with doubts. Borussia Dortmund had a shaky start to the season, had seen Nuri Sahin as a manager walk out, was left with an interim coach for a few weeks, and is now placing Niko Kovac at the reins of the ship to stabilize things. The game in Portugal would be only his second at the helm, meaning the team was still adjusting to his system and identity.
If that wasn't all, Dortmund has been unreliable on the road. Of its last five away games, it has won just two. For a team that needs to turn things around, this record doesn't inspire much confidence.
That said, Dortmund has shown flashes of brilliance in this Champions League campaign. A 7-1 thrashing of Celtic showed that when everything clicked into gear, the team could be overwhelming. However, late losses in the last rounds to Bologna and Barcelona of the league phase denied them direct qualification into the round of 16 and exposed some defensive frailties that are yet to be fixed.
While Sporting would look to bank on its home dominance, Dortmund does so on its solid record against Portuguese clubs. Indeed, the Germans boast a 64% win percentage against teams from Portugal and have already beaten the Lisbon outfit three times in the Champions League, losing only once, somewhat ironically, in their most recent meeting back in 2021.