Sporting open 2026-27 I Liga season away at Estrela da Amadora with Ioannidis debut

Season opener at José Gomes

Sporting CP, the reigning I Liga runners-up, begin their 2026-27 league campaign on Saturday with an away fixture against Estrela da Amadora. The match kicks off at 20:30 at the Estádio José Gomes, as reported by TSF and Observador on 8 August 2026. Both outlets published their confirmed lineups in the late afternoon, roughly two hours before the scheduled start.

Sporting's starting eleven

The visitors field Rui Silva in goal behind a back four of Georgios Vagiannidis, Eduardo Quaresma, Gonçalo Inácio and Rodrigo Dias. Sergi Altimira and Issa Doumbia form the midfield partnership, with Geny Catamo, Rodrigo Zalazar and Flávio Gonçalves operating behind striker Fotis Ioannidis. The Greek forward, a new addition to the squad, makes his competitive debut for the Lions from the start.

Bench options

Observador lists Sporting's substitutes as João Virgínia, Diego Callai, Silas Andersen, Rafa Nel, Pedro Lima, Iván Fresneda, Ousmane Diomande, Jesse Derry, Luís Guilherme, Eduardo Felicíssimo and Luis Suárez. The bench blends experienced options such as Fresneda and Diomande with younger players including Derry and Felicíssimo.

Estrela da Amadora lineup

Neither source provided a full starting eleven for the home side at the time of publication. TSF and Observador both left the Estrela da Amadora lineup section empty in their initial matchday posts, suggesting the home team's formation had not yet been confirmed when the articles went live.