Sporting can take a giant step towards the national championship title if they win on Friday night when they visit the 'troubled' Gil Vicente, in the opening match of the 29th round of the I League. After the late victory in the derby against Benfica in the last round, the Lions increased their advantage over the champion Benfica, who are in second place in the competition, to four points, and still have a game to play, against Famalicão. The team from Alvalade, who could have a seven-point advantage over their closest rival in a few days, will face a team in a delicate position, in 14th place, two points above the 'red zone' of the standings. The 'roosters' have not won in the competition for six matches and have lost the last three. The poor form of the Barcelos team led the club's management to sack coach Vítor Campelos. Carlos Cunha, the coach who was with the under-23s, took over the team on an interim basis, before the more than likely arrival of Tozé Marreco. Despite their 100 per cent winning record at Alvalade, the green and whites have shown some difficulties away from home, where they have already dropped 10 points. It will therefore be a difficult match for Rúben Amorim's team. The match between Gil Vicente and Sporting is scheduled to start at 8:15 pm this Friday at the Estádio Cidade de Barcelos and will be refereed by Manuel Oliveira, from the AF Porto.

Coaches in direct speech

Carlos Cunha:

Change of coach: "We can't bury our heads in the sand and say that nothing happened. But the team is prepared and has to look at this game as an opportunity to show itself and add value, and not as a moment of tension."

Abnormal days: "It wasn't a normal week, and what happened didn't go unnoticed by the players. We try to give comfort and confidence. With the good foundation that Vítor [Campelos] gave us, I feel the team is prepared. What we tried to do was to share our ideas about what this game will require."

Opponent: "How to stop this Sporting is the question of the moment, and we are several trying to do it. It is a team that is competent at all times. We will keep what we intend to do to try to deceive Rúben Amorim. It will not be easy, but it is up to us to try."

Rúben Amorim:

Euphoria after the derby victory: "Obviously, as the championship progresses, we believe more and more. The players were very happy with the result. The minute of the goal, the stadium... We went inside and the stadium was still with people inside. Everyone was happy with the result. This week we worked very calmly and quietly. People believe more and more, but there is a lot to do. I didn't feel any euphoria. I felt that everyone wants to play. They are aware of the difficulty of the games that are coming up. I didn't feel any difference for the next few weeks. I was uncomfortable because the why were very happy, but that was all. The players are as I have always seen them, confident, but thinking that the games are always very difficult."

Sporting continues to concede goals from set pieces: "We have conceded some goals from set pieces, mainly free kicks. In that part of the game, we are one of the worst teams, but then, at European level, we are one of the best teams in terms of attacking, especially from corners. It's something that doesn't connect with the other. We have to be more aggressive. This week, we tried to improve the speed with which we go into position, I think it can help. We have to increase our concentration and aggression, talk to each other more... I would say that, if we look at the percentage, we have conceded a lot of goals from set pieces, and that is reflected. We have teams shooting less against our team, but we concede more goals. We have to improve on that point. I wouldn't say it's our Achilles heel, we're going to improve, but it's something we're focusing on during the week, clearly."

Continues if he is champion: "The future is with Gil Vicente. I won't talk about it anymore, because you always ask the same questions. I understand the doubt, but the goal is to win titles. Then we'll see (...). I can't guarantee that we'll win the championship, so I can't guarantee that I'll stay."

Recent results

Gil Vicente: L-D-D-D-D

Sporting: W-W-W-D-W

Last eleven

Gil Vicente: Andrew Ventura, Alex Pinto, Gabriel Pereira, Rúben Fernandes, Leonardo Buta, Pedro Tiba, Martim Neto, Murilo Souza, Kanya Fujimoto, Tidjany Touré, Depú.

Sporting: Franco Israel, Jeremiah St. Juste, Sebastián Coates, Gonçalo Inácio, Geny Catamo, Hidemasa Morita, Morten Hjulmand, Matheus Reis, Francisco Trincão, Viktor Gyökeres, Pedro Gonçalves.

Absences

Gil Vicente: Tidjany Touré (suspension) and Afonso Moreira (injured);

Sporting: Antonio Adán (injury); Hjulmand and Nuno Santos (suspension).