Sporting Lisbon will aim to continue their strong start to the season when they compete in the Taca de Portugal fourth round against Dumiense on Sunday.
The game provides a 'David vs. Goliath' story with the visitors being in the fourth tier of Portuguese football.
Match preview
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Sporting Lisbon have made an impressive start in the Primeira Liga this season, having only lost one of their 11 games to this point which has left them second in the table.
They will now be trying to take that form into the Taca de Portugal as they aim to progress into the fifth round, but the team has already improved on their efforts last season.
Sporting Lisbon were knocked out in the third round during the 2022-23 campaign, but Ruben Amorim guided his team past that stage this time around.
A 3-1 victory over Olivais e Moscavide was enough for them to reach this stage, which saw Marcus Edwards, Geny Catamo and Daniel Braganca get themselves on the scoresheet.
However, Amorim will be looking for more concentration from his team this weekend after they were defeated 2-1 by Benfica during their most recent outing, following two goals in additional time at the end of the game from their opponents.
The visitors will head into this match as the underdogs considering how much lower they are in the Portuguese football pyramid, but they will be out to provide a surprise in this one.
However, Dumiense heads into this match on the back of four games without a victory, and a bigger concern could be the fact that they have only scored once across those fixtures.
Goals were not a problem in the second round of the Taca de Portugal, though, as Fabio Oliveira's men had to score four times to progress in a seven-goal thriller against Santarem.
That was not the case in the third round though as they showcased defensive qualities by keeping a clean sheet as a 1-0 win was enough to secure this match.
Sunday could come as a welcome distraction for the club, though, as Dumiense currently sits bottom of the Campeonato de Portugal table, with this game providing some freedom from that pressure.
Team News
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Sporting Lisbon will likely field plenty of changes to the starting lineup, with Amorim set to use this fixture as a chance to rest some of his key players while giving minutes to other members of the squad.
Catamo has been out of action as of late due to a muscle strain, but he was expected back following the international break which could lead to him getting a run out this weekend.
Edwards is another player who could feature after scoring in the third round of the competition, while Viktor Gyokeres is expected to be rested.
For the visitors, Diogo Ribeiro will have plenty of pressure on him upfront as he looks to cause problems for the hosts.
Sporting Lisbon possible starting lineup:
Israel; St. Juste, Neto, Reis; Trincao, Braganca, Essugo, Fresneda; Edwards, Goncalves, Paulinho
Dumiense possible starting lineup:
Alves; Faria, Paulo, Goncalo, Costa; Fellipe, Silva, Araujo, Botelho; Ribeiro, Marques
We say: Sporting Lisbon 5-0 Dumiense
Sporting Lisbon walks into this match as the favourites, and while anything can happen in football, their quality should prove to be too much in this particular fixture.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
