FC Porto stun Juventus in Champions League epic to reach the quarter final

FC Porto pulled off a minor upset on an epic Champions League night, overcoming Juventus in an enthralling battle that went all the way to extra time and had to ultimately be decided by the away goal rule.

It wasn't in the script. Heading into the second leg, Juventus still remained the comfortable favourites to advance, particularly after their late away goal in the first leg made it 2-1 to their opponents and narrowed Porto’s slender advantage ever further, and few would have anticipated that this Porto side, currently residing in 3rd in the Portuguese Primeira Liga standings, would have been able to see it out and apply the killer blow to Cristiano Ronaldo and his star-studdedclub.

However, showing serious intent and a willingness to go toe-to-toe with the Italian champions, Porto seemed to catch Juventus off guard, and the initial signs suggested that this wasn't going to be an easy hurdle for Juventus to overcome.

Porto created opportunities throughout the first half and looked just as threatening as their opponents, and it didn't take long for the Primeira Liga holders to get their deserved reward for their courageous game plan, with Mehdi Taremi winning a penalty just prior to the 20th minute.

Porto’s player of the season thus far in Sergio Oliveira stood over the spot to try and take full advantage and give his side an unlikely early lead, knowing that successful conversion would neutralise any perceived advantage Juventus had by cancelling out their away goal, and he made no mistake, smashing low and hard past Szczesny to offer his side renewed hope of advancing.

And Porto looked relatively comfortable for the duration of the first half, Marchesin in the Porto goal a match for anything thrown at him and the players in front of him working hard to preserve their slender lead, but Juventus were largely lacklustre and were not hitting the heights many might have expected.

The second half got off to the worst of starts for Sergio Conceicão's side though, Chiesa finishing well from a Ronaldo layoff to get his side right back into the game just 4 minutes after the restart, and there was obvious concern that Porto’s incredible effort up to this point was going to be undone.

This was only further compounded five minutes later when Taremi picked up a second yellow for a needless punting of the ball after the referee had already blown his whistle to bring proceedings to a temporary halt, with the Dutch official, after giving himself plenty of time to consider, opting to give the Iranian striker a second booking for his petulance.

It was a disastrous five minutes for Porto, and seeing this out was looking increasingly unlikely.

Juventus then took the lead on the night just past the hour mark, Chiesa the hero again to ensure that Juventus were right back in the tie. With half an hour remaining and a man advantage, most would have expected the Serie A giants to finish the job in 90 minutes and end Porto's hopes of a dream night in Turin.

It did not shape up that way though. Juventus, as would be expected, dominated proceedings from that point on, on the front door and taking the game to their opponents as they looked to capitalize on their numerical advantage, but Porto's incredible work rate and commitment to both the game plan and the cause deserved to see them at least take it to extra time.

They had a hint of fortune along the way of course; Juventus did find the back of the net for the 3rd time on the night through Alvaro Morata, though he proved to have strayed just offside, while Cuadrado struck the crossbar with a superb curling effort in stoppage time in a heart-stopping moment. But Porto’s ability to get across the line and take the game to extra time was for the most part due to their performance as a defensive unit.

Marchesin made some great stops to protect his goal, and Mbemba was a rock at the back, but a particularly special mention has to go to Porto’s veteran captain Pepe.

Now aged 38, many outside of Portugal may not have thought he still had it in him, but showing the same athleticism, leadership and desire he did a decade ago, Pepe put in one of the most sensational individual performances likely ever seen in European Cup history. The mark of a legend, a world class talent and a big game player, he met everything thrown his way with complete conviction, and Juventus did not have a solution to get past him for the most part.

It wasn't just down to Pepe though. Every player performed to the highest level and all were in synchronisation and reading off the same hymn sheet as they worked as a phenomenal unit to drag themselves across the line. From front to back, everyone was fully determined to advance, with Moussa Marega working tirelessly as he so often does in the role of defensive forward to set the tone of the game.

And in extra time, Porto only continued with their understandably pragmatic, but also threatening, approach. Defending as a team, Porto also had plenty of promising attacking moments too, with the likes of Jesus Corona, Wilson Manafa and Sergio Oliveira so comfortable on the ball and in tight spaces to launch attacks whenever the opportunity arose. Somehow Porto continued to match their wealthy opponents despite being a man down, and the underdogs were still dreaming of an upset.

And in the second half of extra time, the unthinkable became a reality. Oliveira, who won himself a freekick superbly after nutmegging McKennie on the edge of the box before being dragged to the floor, stood over the ball and, after the lengthiest of run-ups, coolly blasted the ball across the ground and under the wall to get a second away goal for his side, stinging the glove of Szczesny on the way.

The celebrations among the Porto players and Porto bench said it all; they had one firm foot in the quarter finals, with Juventus now needing two goals in 5 minutes to be able to progress.

But celebrations suddenly seemed slightly premature when, perhaps predictably, Juventus immediately responded. Having failed to breach the 10-man Porto wall for close to an hour, Rabiot rose highest to convert with a header just after Porto levelled proceedings, making Dragons fans start sweating again.

Heading into the 5th minute of added time, Juventus had one final chance from a freekick that was delivered into the box, but Marchesin managed to punch out and Porto scrambled clear to hold onto a hugely impressive away goals victory.

The Porto players collapsed to the floor at the death, perhaps too exhausted to celebrate, perhaps disbelieving of what they had managed to achieve, against the odds. They pulled it off though, and they will be going into the hat for the quarter final draw.