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 Championship titles for Sporting are a bit like buses, in that you have to wait for ages for one to come along, and then when one does, they all come along at once. In Sporting�s case, they waited 18 years to celebrate a championship victory, and now in the space of three seasons, they have won the title twice. It was a championship filled with drama and emotion, as Sporting experienced many lows, before stringing together a sensational run, which saw Sporting go unbeaten for over 6 months, and triumphantly claim themselves champions of Portugal.
It had started so well for Sporting, as they deservedly overcame their northern rivals Porto at home by 1-0, in a game that saw a lot of controversy, but not much football. However, the style was not important, but the fact that Sporting had got Laszlo Boloni�s reign off to the best start possible was.
This was probably to be one of the few glories in the first month or so of Boloni�s reign, as Sporting crumbled, to such an extent that they fell into the relegation zone. The calamitous 3-0 defeat in Belem, against Belenenses, and the 1-0 home defeat against Alverca, who would eventually be relegated, had some supporters calling for Boloni to resign.
However, Boloni�s saviour was to arrive. Jardel was his name, and scoring goals was his game. It cannot be doubted that the shrewd investment made on Jardel was probably the most significant reason in Sporting�s eventual success, as Jardel went on to score 42 league goals, equalling Eusebio�s best ever tally in the process. Jardel�s impact was immediate as he scored a penalty on his debut, helping Sporting struggle to a 1-1 draw away to ten man Leiria. After four games, Sporting had managed a measly four points, which saw them languishing in 16th place. This was certainly not the way Boloni had planned his first season, but with the help of Jo�o Pinto, Jardel, Beto and company, Boloni�s fortunes were soon to change.
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More news stories coming in the near future.
