It’s a tall order, no doubt, but Sporting have defied poor league form to upset the odds before.
Sporting Lisbon are the Europa League's outsiders in every sense of the word but can the unfancied Portuguese side prevent an all-Spanish final?
It might have been another disappointing domestic campaign for Sporting but all will be forgiven if they somehow end up in a major European final. To do so, they will have to see off Manchester United's conquerors Athletic Bilbao, the 2.92/1 favourites to win the competition.
It's a tall order, no doubt, but Sporting have defied poor league form to upset the odds before. Ricardo Sa Pinto's men have already seen off Manchester City in this year's competition and if their performance at Eastlands is anything to go by, they aren't likely to be intimidated this time either.
After finishing a dispiriting 36 points behind champions Porto last season, Sporting had hoped for a new dawn with the appointment of Domingos Paciencia - who led Braga to last year's Europa League final.
But there was to be no dramatic turnaround. Paciencia was eventually dismissed after a run of just two wins in ten in all competitions proved too much to stomach. Following a revival, of sorts, Sporting are now fourth in Portugal's top flight, 13 points off the pace at the top.
They are by no means the first to find themselves gate crashing another country's party in the last four of Europe, though it hasn't always gone the way of the outsider. In last year's Europa League, Villarreal found themselves short of friends, with Braga, Porto and Benfica making up the final four. And on that occasion the Portuguese procession continued, with the Spaniards making way for a Braga v Porto final.
But there is precedent to inspire Sa Pinto's men. In 2008/09, Barcelona had three English clubs for company in the semi-finals of the Champions League. It didn't bother them one jot as they promptly beat Chelsea before seeing off Manchester United in the final. And just two years earlier AC Milan managed a similar feat, toppling Man United in the last four, prior to outgunning Liverpool in the final.
Sporting Lisbon are 7.87/1 to win the competition outright and perhaps a slightly more probable 2.82/1 to triumph in the first leg of their semi-final.
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