Caneira shares Sporting credit

Marco Caneira was determined to shrug off individual praise after his wonderfully executed volley earned an important Matchday 1 victory for Sporting Clube de Portugal against FC Internazionale Milano.

Defeat avenged
The goal allowed the defender to avenge a 5-1 defeat against an Adriano-inspired Inter at his old club, Valencia CF, in the 2004/05 UEFA Champions League group stage, but he insisted that his effort was nothing personal. "I don't want to look at this result as revenge for that night and I also don't want people to say that Sporting won this time because Inter were poor," he told uefa.com.

Unforgettable goal
"This was a victory which we planned for and which we earned," he added. "Perhaps people will focus on my goal, and I admit I have never scored a better one in my entire career, but this was a team victory, which everyone worked for and which everyone can share. When the ball went in I felt real joy, but for Sporting, not for me."

Unusual terms
Inter will be regretting that the 27-year-old Portuguese international Caneira did not heed Valencia's call to return to the Mestalla stadium and Primera División football this season. Caneira joined Sporting under the unusual terms of a five-year loan. "I'm very happy that I chose to stay on with this team instead of returning to Valencia," he said. "I believe Sporting are going somewhere. We have spent many months working hard for this coach [Paulo Bento] and you can see that the blend of youth and experience is developing really quickly."

Speedy Sporting
Inter midfielder Olivier Dacourt confirmed the pace of Sporting's play had been Inter's undoing. Before Matchday 1, coach Roberto Mancini had warned that the Serie A champions might be short of match fitness, having played just two competitive matches this season, and that their victory against ACF Fiorentina on Saturday had left his side drained. "Sporting played like a hungry team and given what we have seen of them on video before the match I can't say it was a surprise," said Dacourt. "It is clear that their tactic was to play very high tempo football and we knew that when you face a predominantly young side they will be very hungry and very energetic.

Taking chances
"The fact is that we didn't perform well enough to counter that tactic but it is only the first match," added the Frenchman. "We are all aware that there are five more opportunities to get things right and qualify and we need to start taking those opportunities immediately."