Any discussion about Portuguese football will quickly concern 'Os Tres Grandes', the Big Three of Sporting CP, Porto and Benfica. Since the turn of the century, it had in reality narrowed to a Big Two. Sporting had ruled in the middle of the 20th Century, winning 10 league titles between 1941 and 1958, but Porto overtook them as Benfica's great rivals from the 1980s onwards, with Sporting winning no titles at all in the 1990s. They had a brief resurgence at the turn of the century, but then endured their longest drought of all time, with Benfica and Porto sharing the crown between them for 19 long years.
The lack of silverware was far from being the biggest problem, however. The atmosphere around the club had grown so toxic that in 2018, a mob of 50 masked fans invaded the dressing rooms at the club's training ground and started attacking the players, shouting: "We're going to kill you." The assault led to seven players cancelling their contracts, including Portugal internationals Rui Patricio and William Carvalho as well as top prospect Rafael Leao, and to president Bruno de Carvalho being voted out by members.
But just three years on from the darkest day in the club's history, Sporting ended Porto and Benfica's near two-decade stranglehold on the title, lifting the 2021 title. And the architect of this historic turnaround was Ruben Amorim, the man Manchester United have chosen to replace Erik ten Hag.
Amorim's achievements did not end with that title win. He took the team to the knockout stages of the Champions League for the first time in 11 years and then to the quarter-finals of the Europa League. And last season, Sporting reclaimed their crown, winning their 20th title with two games to spare. They have gone from strength to strength, winning all nine of their league games so far this term while taking seven points from their three matches in the Champions League.
Amorim has put the meaning back in the notion of the 'Big Three' and Sporting are back to where they believe they should be, as the pre-eminent force in Portuguese football after a long period in the wilderness. So it is not surprising that United have turned to the 39-year-old after making an abysmal start to the season. But will Amorim be able to succeed where so many of his prestigious predecessors have failed?