Trincao: Sporting believed in Champions League comeback from ´very first minute´

Sporting CP’s Trincao says the team believed in the comeback “from the very first minute” after they reached the Champions League quarter-finals with a 5-3 aggregate win over Bodo/Glimt.

Sporting endured a disappointing trip to the Arctic Circle last week, suffering a 3-0 first-leg defeat that made them look down and out in the last 16.

However, they produced a stunning recovery at Estadio Jose Alvalade, levelling the aggregate scoreline in normal time, before scoring twice in extra time to get over the line.

Goncalo Inacio, Pote and Luis Suarez got the first three goals, with Maxi Araujo and substitute Rafael Nel scoring the clinching goals.

Trincao inspired them with two assists; he is just the second Sporting player to provide multiple assists in a Champions League match after Didier Lang against Monaco in September 1997 (also two).

And he said Sporting never doubted their ability to turn the tie around, despite the scoreline.

“What matters is the team’s victory; we had the intensity, the momentum and the energy that we lacked in the first match,” he told SportTV.

“We always believed – the manager, us and the fans. We got the pressure right; we pressed harder and better, we had a different energy, a different intensity – we’d been warned about Bodo’s style of play.

FRANCISCO TRINCÃO #SCPBOD #UCL pic.twitter.com/SdrFZCHQR6

— Sporting CP (@SportingCP) March 17, 2026

“We believed in it [the comeback] from the very first minute; the manager made us believe in it too. Everyone believed, and the fans also gave us that energy throughout the match.

“As time went on, we realised we were capable of it and saw it through to the end. We’ve achieved something historic.”

Sporting attempted 38 shots worth 3.4 expected goals (xG), while Bodo mustered just nine attempts (0.5 xG) as they struggled to mount much of a fight.

It meant they missed out on a first Champions League quarter-final, having impressed in the competition this term, and Patrick Berg noted that they were disappointed to fall short.

“It feels really tough right now,” he told TV 2. “Sporting were sharp when they managed to get into the second spaces and play the ball in behind our defence.

“Of course, they played a very good match. But first and foremost, we have to focus on ourselves and evaluate what we could have done better, because there’s no doubt that our performance was far below the level we expect.

“We had a game plan, but we did not really manage to stick to it, and it all became a bit in-between. Unfortunately, then we ended up being a worse version of ourselves.”