Sporting appear to be coping far better than many anticipated after selling Viktor Gyokeres to Arsenal.
According to a report from A Bola by Rogério Azevedo and Hugo Forte, the Lisbon side are showing no signs of collapse in attack, despite losing last season’s top scorer to the Premier League.
The article highlights that Sporting’s start to the new Liga Portugal campaign has been explosive, with 18 goals scored in the opening six games.
That figure may be four less than they had at the same stage last season with Gyokeres in the squad, but it still represents the club’s second-best tally of the 21st century. Only once since 1990 have Sporting managed to find the net so often in the first six rounds.
Historically, their current scoring record puts them alongside legendary sides from 1990/91 and 1973/74, who also reached the 18-goal mark after six matches.
Coach Rui Borges’ team are also excelling in terms of expected goals (xG), with their 4.66 tally against Moreirense setting a record for the club since the metric began being tracked in Portugal.
Borges brushed off any talk of inefficiency, stating after the 3-0 win: “Lack of objectivity with 4.66 expected goals? I don’t think so.”
So after a summer window full of drama, the club look to have found a way to keep their forward momentum despite the loss of their Swedish star to Arsenal.
