It was the last thing a frustrated Antonio Conte needed with the quickfire schedule rolling at full pace and the pressure building in Group D of the 2022/23 UEFA Champions League (UCL).
Conte was reduced to pleading publicly for a significant purse to splurge with during the next transfer window as he struggles to account for Tottenham’s workload as well as the injuries to key players Dejan Kulusevski (22) and Richarlison (25).
Anything is possible now that their London fortress has been breached, though they have avoided the humiliation of three consecutive competitive losses for more than 18 months now, so their consistency could shine through in what will be their 50th UCL match (from the group stage onwards).
Sporting Lisbon put their own duo of defeats behind them by returning back to the top four of Portugal's Primeira Liga, and a repeat of their 2-0 triumph over Tottenham in the reverse fixture would certainly continue elevating the rising stocks of manager Rúben Amorim, who was reportedly considered by Aston Villa to replace Steven Gerrard before they announced Unai Emery.
It’s a really tight affair in Group D with no side yet out of the qualification picture, although Sporting will remain behind Marseille if the head-to-head tiebreak is required, so they really need something from this game if they hope to progress.
They’ve already claimed one surprise scalp away from home in this group stage, thrashing Eintracht Frankfurt 3-0 as underdogs, though it’ll be a challenge to replicate such success considering they’re without a win from any of their last eight UEFA trips to England (D3, L5).
Players to watch: It’s worth noting that leading Tottenham goal scorer Harry Kane (29) has failed to find the net in three of their four group stage games this season, saving the bulk of his scoring for English soil.
Young forward Francisco Trincão (22) was on the scoresheet in both of Sporting’s away outings in this group stage, albeit with mixed results (W1, L1).
Hot stat: All but one of Sporting’s last 14 away games in all competitions finished with a winner (W8, L5).
