Arsenal take a 1-0 lead back to London, but the reaction from Sporting CP tells a very different story from the scoreline. Inside the home dressing room and in the press room, there was no sense of being outplayed.

Instead, there was a consistent message. For them, the tie remains open.

Rui Borges frames the game as balanced

Sporting manager Rui Borges repeatedly returned to one idea – this was an even contest.

He began by praising his team and putting the defeat into context, explaining why he felt the result was harsh:

“Regarding the game, it was a balanced match. Raya being named man of the match says a lot about that.”

Borges used specific moments to reinforce that view:

“Arsenal, apart from the first half chance that hit the bar, then have a shot before the goal, straight at Rui. We have three clear chances where Arsenal make three good saves.”

From his perspective, the numbers and the flow of the game pointed in the same direction:

“That shows the balance, because the game was balanced, around 54 or 56 percent possession.”

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