Porto and Inter tonight at Do Dragao will settle a tie that remains open after a narrow 1-0 draw three weeks ago at the San Siro. The ‘Nerazzurri’, three-time European champions, defend the goal in extremis scored by Romelu Lukaku in the equal match in the first leg with the aim of qualifying for the quarterfinals of the Champions League for the first time since 2011.
Porto, two-time European champions, will achieve this for the fourth time since 2015. Despite the big loss in average of Otávio and right-back Joao Mario due to injury, Sergio Concaiçao, coach of the ‘dragons’ , is confident in the experience of the inflammable Pepe, who forms a tandem in the defense of the Cantabrian Iván Marcano, and in the goals of the Iranian Mehdi Taremi, who can join the attack of the Murcian Toni Martínez.
Seconds in their leagues
Both teams occupy second place in their leagues, although far from the lead, Porto is eight points behind Benfica, while Inter, 18 behind Napoli, has said goodbye to the ‘scudetto’. In addition, the last defeat, on Friday against mediocre Spezia (2-1), puts pressure again on the questionable Simone Inzaghi, who has already lost eight games in Serie A.
In Italy, they make sure that the coach plays a role this week because, after the toss-up in the Champions League, on Sunday he will host Juventus, also a rival of Inter in the Coppa semifinals (April 4 and 25). The possible return of Antonio Conte, whose future at Tottenham is unclear, is moving to the bench after making Inter Italian champions in 2021.
Lukaku or Dzeko
Inzaghi lost Robin Gosens but regained Milan Skriniar, although all indications were that he would not start. The coach must decide who will join Lautaro Martínez in attack. In the first leg, he opted for Edin Dzeko, but Lukaku came on for the Bosnian on the hour mark and finished the scoring in the 86th minute after Otávio had been sent off
Porto are clinging to the Do Dragao, where they have managed just three defeats and one draw in all competitions this season. There Bayer Leverkusen (2-0) and Atlético (2-1) fell in the group stage. On the other hand, Inter need to improve their form away from home after adding just one point in their last three league trips. although in his group he started a 3-3 draw at Camp Nou against Barça which will be worth it now to qualify
likely lineups
Do Dragao, 9:00 pm
Porto: Diogo Costa; Pepê, Pepe, Marcano, Zaidu; Grujic, Uribe, Eustáquio, Galeno; Taremi, Toni Martinez
Instructor: Sergio Conceicao
The
Inter: Onana; Darmian, Acerbi, Bastoni; Dumfries, Barella, Calhanoglu, Mkhitaryan, Dimarco; Lautaro Martinez, Lukaku
Coach: Simone Inzaghi
Referee: Szymon Marciniak (Poland)
The
Source: La Verdad
I’m Rose Herman and I work as an author for Today Times Live. My expertise lies in writing about sports, a passion of mine that has been with me since childhood. As part of my job, I provide comprehensive coverage on everything from football to tennis to golf.
