Channels of fluorescent green smoke and puffs of Bifanas pollute the windy air outside the José Alvalade Stadium. The Super Bock flows and thousands of Sporting fans, guided by the Ultra Brigade group, add their voices to a war cry.
With the league title having ended in the green half of the Portuguese capital only once since 2002, there is a sense of unease in the air and the cacophonous noise seems quite tribal. The leader of the tribe is, then, the former Benfica midfielder Rubén Amorim.
His face adorns an elderly fan’s t-shirt, along with the phrase ‘e se corre bem?’. When asked by Mail Sport for a translation, the gentleman offers little more than: ‘Ruben? Love’. At least in this corner of Lisbon, and in the ivory towers of several European clubs, that sentiment is shared.
Enough of us acting cheerful as British journalists, Google kindly reports that the phrase is a nod to Amorim’s first press conference as a 34-year-old who took the job at Sporting after just 13 games in charge of the maximum category, becoming his fourth boss of the mandate with much fury.
Faced with a multitude of questions about what he would do if his tenure ended as catastrophically as his predecessors, against a backdrop of understandable skepticism from the local media, Amorim simply responded: “What if everything goes well?”
Sporting Lisbon coach Ruben Amorim is emerging as the favorite to succeed Jurgen Klopp
Mail Sport was in Lisbon to see Amorim, 39, in action on the touchline as he guided his team to a deserved 2-1 victory over bitter rivals Benfica in the league on Saturday night.
Amorim is a hero among Sporting fans after leading them to the Portuguese title in 2020-21
Your browser does not support iframes.
And it has gone well. Better than anyone could have expected. After earning a deserved 2-1 victory over bitter rivals Benfica on Saturday night, Amorim look set to win a second league title in four years, with an upcoming Cup final to boot. They are four points ahead with one game less.
The importance should not be underestimated. Before Amorim’s arrival, Sporting had won the league only twice in four decades. Only five teams have ever won the Portuguese title, compared to 24 in England. Benfica and Porto represent 76 percent of that figure.
In Portugal there is an old saying: “Portugal is Lisbon, the rest is landscape.” Amorim has changed the landscape and it was eye-opening to see him up close at the Lisbon Derby on Saturday night.
Liverpool fans hoping for a Jurgen Klopp clone will be disappointed. In any case, they will get a coach more similar to Pep Guardiola, at least in his mannerisms. He patrolled his technical area like a man possessed, metaphorically kicking every ball from the sideline.
He paced back and forth like a lion waiting for feeding time and crouched down when he could no longer bear the anguish of the blood and thunder battle. From time to time, he would jump up and bark orders at his stars, and some would be called aside for questioning.
Despite his energetic style, he rarely lost his composure, even when Benfica’s Angel di Maria could have been sent off for a raised fist. The only time Amorim broke the calm was when his midfielder Morten Hjulmand made two back passes in a matter of seconds.
Arms flailed and the young coach had grown tired and the Danish player was replaced minutes later. Amorim can make mistakes in any area, but does not tolerate negativity. Although a draw was satisfactory for the title race, they bravely went in search of victory.
Amorim patrolled his technical area like a man possessed, metaphorically kicking every ball.
But he maintained his composure to guide his team to what could be a pivotal victory in the title race.
Many feel Amorim will be the ideal replacement for Klopp when he leaves Anfield this summer.
The cameras focused on Amorim idol José Mourinho above with the shrimp sandwich brigade, or is it the Iberian ham plate brigade in Portugal? – who had a wry smile. Amorim was baptized in these pages as ‘Special One 2.0’ fifteen days ago. He has laughed at that headline ever since.
“I’m just the coach of Sporting,” he said. But there is no doubt about the resemblance in his press conferences. Amorim has an aura of confidence, the audience’s eyes are attentive to his every word and he manages to provoke some laughter among the hardened hackers. Easier said than done.
In the press conferences for the Benfica game, he was bombarded with questions about Liverpool. ‘I can’t guarantee that I will continue at Sporting’ and ‘I won’t talk about my future anymore’ were the two headline phrases he said when he was asked if he could ‘do a Xabi Alonso’ and rule himself out.
Mail Sport reported last week how people close to Amorim are actively exploring a possible move to England. All the journalists based in Lisbon seem convinced that he is heading to Merseyside, and the local media increases their speculation less than an hour before beating Benfica.
Nothing is advanced yet, but calm reigns between both parties. Liverpool were willing to respect Sporting’s title, but April is a key month in the process to recruit Klopp’s successor. As we saw with the German’s departure, Liverpool know how to keep secrets.
Amorim will have demands on its backroom staff. He sees his inner circle as an extension of his principles rather than a hierarchy, with Adelio Cándido, Emanuel Ferro and Carlos Fernandes, 29, all flying from their seats in the dugout at times on Saturday.
On the pitch, Sporting set up their 3-4-3 formation – to which Amorim is said to be “married” – and the press box at the back of the stadium offered a perfect vantage point to watch a pressing game. relentless with fast players. , vertical football.
Amorim’s idol is José Mourinho and in some quarters he has been nicknamed the Special One 2.0.
Sports fans love Amorim, but they and the local media are resigned to leaving this summer.
At Sporting, Amorim has played a relentless pressing game with fast, vertical football.
The build-up was electric, with former Coventry striker Viktor Gyokeres playing a pivotal role on and off the ball. Amorim’s fists were rolling in the air as his team worked the ball back and forth instead of trying to exploit space with passes across the lines.
Their ball-playing defenders, led by veteran captain Sebastian Coates, who once played for Liverpool, are also key. Liverpool have had scouts at many Sporting games, according to Portuguese sources, with left-footers Gonçalo Inacio and Ousmane Diomande highly valued by many clubs.
“Ruben is our GOAT (best of all time) as a coach,” says one fan, Martim. “That’s right, attacking football, but his personality and his way of speaking and organizing his speech is the best thing he has.” “I’m going to miss him a lot.” Another, Jorge, says: “he made our people happy.”
Judging by the reaction of the fans after the victory over Benfica, the joy is reaching its peak, and the celebrations continue well into the night in the Bairro Alto and Alfama neighborhoods of this beautiful city. His lack of experience means he has skeptics. But as he would say… what if it turns out well?
What Amorim’s Liverpool could look like in the 3-4-3: Alisson; Konate, Van Dijk, Gómez; Alexander-Arnold, Szoboszlai, Mac Allister, Robertson; Salah, Núñez, Jota