Fourth Best League

At 6’2/90 kgs and a strong build,  Viktor Gyökeres  offers Sporting manager  Rúben Amorim something different. A true number 9.   The 25-year-old has brought a spark to a Sporting side that is looking to bounce back after a disappointing 2022/23 season.  Tall with good movement,  Gyökeres is an  agile and powerful forward who can play on the wings or as a lone target man. The striker has good speed,  is comfortable with both feet, strong in the air and a capable penalty-taker.  View this post on Instagram A post shared by Viktor Gyökeres (@viktorgyokeres) Sporting's  summer signing has made an immediate impact for the club   since his highly publicised move to Lisbon.  Signed in July for a club record transfer fee of  € 20 million (plus add-ons), Gyökeres quelled any doubts over his exorbitant fee with a stunning brace against FC Vizela.  In the 14th minute, the striker showed...

Portuguese champions Sport Lisboa e Benfica are set to begin their title defence on August 14 against Boavista.  Benfica is riding high after an incredible 2022/23 campaign that saw them win their first  Primeira Liga title in four years and reach the Champions League quarter-finals.  Led by newly-appointed manager Roger Schmidt, the club enjoyed one of their best seasons in decades. Benfica went on to win a Portuguese-record 38th league title on the final day of the season, edging out FC Porto by 2 points. On paper it looked like a close title race. It should not have been.  Allow me to set the scene. Benfica entered the match without losing at home all season and with their only loss of the season coming against a talented Sporting Braga team. They were undefeated in 10 straight matches and had won nine of those. In Europe, the Eagles took eight points from four games versus Paris Saint-Germain and Juventus. At the time, Benfica was not only one of the most in-form...