Ultras invade Sporting's training - attack players and staff

Knex*

Mental happenings over in Lisbon today.

Sporting had their training ground invaded by Ultras, believed to be their own fans, who set about attacking players and staff, trashing the training ground, and reportedly stabbed a physio. (edit: From reading more the stabbings may not be true. Could a mod edit the title, please?)

Top goal scorer Bas Dost, who has 34 goals for them this season, is now out of the final this weekend with head and leg injuries.

https://twitter.com/LucasSposito_/status/996455796492861440

http://abola.pt/Nnh/Noticias/Ver/730529

http://ptjornal.com/fisioterapeutas-do-sporting-esfaqueados-276432

From reddit:

Sporting was headed to the last match day, with the same points as Benfica, and with head-to-head lead, so just needs to equal Benfica's result to secure 2nd place and get to the UCL. The lost and Benfica won so they ended 3rd and will not be on the UCL next season.

Their president has been a very inflammatory figure in portuguese football this last couple of years. And recently the situation kept escalating more and more, due to the hate relationship between the big 3.

Their president always had this message of "it's us against them (mostly Benfica), I am one of you" etc. And as long as it was Sporting vs the world, the fans didn't care.

Last month tho after a bad performance, the President went on to Facebook to publicly criticize the players, accusing some of seeking yellows to miss the next game etc.

The players thought it was uncalled for and answer back also publicly. The president simply threatened to suspend every single player that responded to him, he ended up doing nothing, but since then it shifted from Sporting v the rest, to President vs the team.

And just as this sub shows there were plenty of Sporting fans on his side, that thought the players were ungrateful and didn't care for the club etc. Then this happened

Absolutely insane stuff. News of it is still coming out, so hard to grasp fully what condition the players and staff are in.

Reports are breaking that the players want to terminate their contracts across the board.

dfx-

Hamburg threatened similar didn't they?

Knex*

Not too sure on the ins and outs of Hamburg. Will have to read up on that.

Burno Fernandes has told his family move back to Porto and is looking to leave Sporting as soon as possible. He'll have no shortage of suitors, that's for sure. Liverpool were linked with him a few weeks back too.

If players to go the termination route, Sporting will miss out on a massive amount of money in transfer fees.

https://www.ojogo.pt/futebol/1a-liga/sporting/noticias/interior/bruno-fernandes-quer-sair-e-ja-pediu-a-familia-para-voltar-para-o-porto-9345681.html

Also, another snippet that I've found to add to the background of all of this.

In April players confronted the president about the alleged plan to beat the players using ultra supporters. The president denied the accusation even calling the leader of the ultra group, having him deny as well any plan. He further accused some players of wanting to stir trouble.

NIMAN

That kind of stuff used to happy in Italy the odd time.

Wasn't it Inter players who got clipped round the ear a few years back. And many a supercar has been damaged too.

Trigger

Wasn’t Neuer summoned to a meeting with the Bayern Ultras too when he signed originally, they gave him rules or something that he had to adhere to, he wasn’t allowed kiss the badge was one of them I think..

The bit in this story that really sticks is the part about the president supposedly threatening the players before with the ultras.. that’s grounds right there for them to rip up their contracts.

StringerBell

I hope they do all get their contracts legally terminated and leave the club for free. No employee should be subject to that kind of ****.

Bridge93

Their president is arguably the biggest c**t in football. I hope every single player rips their contract up and shoves it down his throat. We'll see how brave he and the ultras are then when the club collapses. Sporting were always my favourite Portuguese side but this is a disgrace

Oat23

dfx- wrote: »

Hamburg threatened similar didn't they?

A couple of idiots unfurled a banner saying they would hunt the players in the streets, yes.

Those people aren't HSV fans, like the people involved here aren't Sporting fans. They are a disgrace to their clubs.

It's about 50 people causing trouble while they are booed by the 54,000 others chanting "We are Hamburgers, you are not.". Media give the 50 idiots all the publicity though.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KqMPr9TcP28

Agent Coulson

Bas Dost very lucky it could have been alot worse.

If a club has colluded with violent fans to administer beatings to players, the club should be banned from European and national competition for a very very long time. Whole leagues have been banned for years from Europe for the actions of hooligan fans.

CSF

That is surreal stuff. Who will want to play for them now?

Trigger

[Deleted User] wrote: »

If a club has colluded with violent fans to administer beatings to players, the club should be banned from European and national competition for a very very long time. Whole leagues have been banned for years from Europe for the actions of hooligan fans.

The one time I actually agree with you

Oat23

Deleted User wrote: »

If a club has colluded with violent fans to administer beatings to players, the club should be banned from European and national competition for a very very long time. Whole leagues have been banned for years from Europe for the actions of hooligan fans.

If I hadn't read so much about their president over the past few months I'd consider it absurd to even think the club could have something to do with it, but the guy is a maniac.

Other club emplyees were also arrested today for fixing Sporting games. Handball and possibly football also. More info here: https://www.reddit.com/r/soccer/comments/8jtufo/sporting_cps_football_director_and_three_others/dz2dps3/?utm_content=permalink&utm_medium=front&utm_source=reddit&utm_name=soccer

Surely being attacked at work is grounds for all the players to break their contracts? I know I would leave and never return.

CSF

I think to be able to break their contracts, the players would have to prove that the attacks were instigated by the behaviour of the club (which in this case doesn't sound too difficult).

Paully D

Man, I’d love those Sporting ultras to suddenly become Sunderland fans! :pac:

Johner

Just lost the cup final to Aves. :pac:

Johner

https://twitter.com/Millar_Colin/status/998263828453445632

pjohnson

Johner wrote: »

https://twitter.com/Millar_Colin/status/998263828453445632

I'd love to think he did it on purpose.

Trigger

pjohnson wrote: »

I'd love to think he did it on purpose.

He looked like he was trying to put it over the bar and was disappointed he nearly scored :pac:

Johner

Johner wrote: »

https://twitter.com/Millar_Colin/status/998263828453445632

Surely he's now Bas Dosn't?

Harry Palmr

Looks like peace is breaking out

https://twitter.com/Sport_Witness/status/1017006780394672128

but still a bit of war

https://twitter.com/AA_Richards/status/1017027627285172224

Knex*

Oh, now that's interesting.

Not sure what ground Sporting have to stand on if Patricio had cancelled his contract. The fact that they had to resign Fernandes would probably help Wolves in their case, too.

Interesting to see how this will play out.

rob316

Any club that thought about doing business with those contract rebels needs their heads checked, very messy and potentially costly.

StringerBell

Can't see how the clubs could be caught out from a legal standpoint, the players maybe. It would surely be used in their favour that a player had to be resigned by sporting rather than able to reinstate the original contract.

pjohnson

Yeah having to re-sign Fernandes clearly means his old contract was cancelled and he was a free agent. Patricio was also a free agent prior to joining Wolves so dunno what is in question.