Sporting CP visit Juventus in what could be an ‘alternative route’ competition

This Thursday, Sporting will visit Juventus in the Europa League (20:00), at the start of the quarter-finals of the tournament, which can serve as an alternative to the two emblems in the difficult access to the Champions.

A scenario that only arises in the event of a triumph in the Europa League, given that in the respective championships Sporting are fourth in Ligue I, five points away from third place, the last exit, still with qualifying rounds, and Juventus seventh in the Series. A.

The “misleading” classification of the Turin formation reflects a penalty of minus 15 points for financial infractions when transferring players, without whom the team would have been second in the championship.

In the first leg of this Thursday, Sporting CP, who will not have a suspended Ugarte, hope to keep their qualification for the semi-finals and when they host the Italian team a week later, on April 20, again at 20:00. , at the José Alvalade Stadium.

Coach Ruben Amorim will miss not only Ugarte’s Ugarte midfielder in Turin, but also Paulinho’s injured striker.

This will be the third game in history between Sporting CP and Juventus, who have faced each other in the 2017/18 Champions League group stage, where the Italians won at home (2:1) and drew (1:1) in Lisbon. . . .

In this Thursday’s game at the Juventus Stadium, Turkey’s Khalil Umut Mehler will be in charge of refereeing, assisted by assistants Mustafa Eyisoy and Kerem Ersoy, and France’s Jérôme Brisard will be the video referee (VAR).

In the second edition of UEFA, Sporting became a finalist in the so-called UEFA Cup (2004/05), while Juventus won the trophy in 1976/77, 1989/90 and 1992/93 and were defeated in the 1994/95 final.