Sporting’s futsal coach Nuno Dias previews the Champions League final against Palma, stressing that his side must outperform their previous displays.
Nuno Dias, Sporting’s futsal head coach, has highlighted the strength of the Spanish side—who are the three-time defending champions—and emphasized that his team needs to be “better than we have been.” He believes there is no clear favorite heading into the final, scheduled for this Sunday at 5 PM.
**Quality of Palma sets up a tough final for Sporting**
“We are facing the European champions. We’ve played them a few times and we’ve lost. They are a team with immense quality—that’s why they are three-time European champions, why they won this competition three times in a row. No one had ever achieved that before, and it says a lot about their quality.”
**An opponent of ‘extreme quality’**
“To give you an idea, I can’t recall a team in a Champions League semifinal losing by five goals and then turning it around. Only the best can do that. They are an opponent of extreme quality and we have the utmost respect for them.”
**No favorites in the final**
“Regarding what Vadillo said, we are not better at all. If we were better, we would win more often, and the fact is that in meaningful matches, we have played Palma twice and lost both times. The better team wins, and Palma has been better than Sporting. For us to beat Palma, we have to be better than we have been, otherwise the result will be the same.”