Dry pounding when you touch acceleration is because you have a crushed or scratched bushing.
The theme of getting the engine to that car depends mainly on the media you have, I recommend that you start as you say for lifting button, see step in the cylinders, piston carbon, that you take it to plan, check, make you make valve seats etc ...
and if you see that the engine has the touched cylinders, (which will have them very likely) then you take out the transmissions. Below hooked to the gearbox, then out, you separate the change from the engine as it works much better.
This is how I did the 2.0 eight valves in a Corsa at GSI. Since I have no bridge to hold the engine above, I opted to lift the car well, fit it with two blurred in the stringers and leave approx about 60 cm between the crankcase and the floor, to lower it I used two cats, one in the box and one in the crankcase just like to climb it and square it on the engine tacos.
If you are going to repair the engine, take advantage to trick it if you want and you want clear to you !!! (Lighten inertia steering wheel, increase compression by a huge planned scam, overmedy pistons, hard chrome bath in the cylinders so that they do not wear and to reduce friction, polish collectors ...