UEFA Champions League 2017-2018 Round Of 16: Porto Vs. Liverpool, Start Time, Live Stream, Preview, And Odds
Portuguese club FC Porto is set to clash with English Premier League giants Liverpool FC at the Dragon Stadium on Wednesday, in the first leg of their Round of 16 match in the 2017-2018 UEFA Champions League tournament.
Start Time And Streaming Info
The game starts at 8:45 p.m. UTC+1. It can be viewed live online via FuboTV.
Porto
The Blue and Whites, last season’s Primeira Liga runners-up, have continued their dominance in the Portuguese domestic league this year as the team is currently on top of the standings after 21 games with 55 points, two points ahead of defending champions Benfica.
Porto routed Chaves, 4-0, in their most recent match at Manuel Branco Municipal Stadium on Sunday. Brazilian forward Soares netted a brace in the 15th and 28th minutes to lead head coach Sergio Conceicao’s squad, before Moussa Marega and Sergio Oliveira scored one goal apiece in the 57th and 90th+1 minutes respectively to complete the four-goal haul.
Three key players will miss this game versus Liverpool due to various injuries, namely Danilo Pereira (calf), Andre Andre (ankle), and main man Vincent Aboubakar (groin). Marega is expected to start up front for the Dragons with Soares coming off the bench.
Marega, 26, is the Portuguese league’s third-best scorer with 16 goals in 20 games so far. Soares has three goals in three starts for Porto and has played 14 games in domestic competitions this season.
Liverpool
The Reds thrashed Southampton, 2-0, at the St. Mary’s Stadium on Sunday to warm up for this clash with Porto. Starting striker Roberto Firmino scored the opening goal of the match in the sixth minute, before Mohamed Salah added another goal three minutes before the halftime break.
Firmino is the sixth-leading scorer in the Premier League this season with 12 goals in 26 appearances, while Salah has been playing his best professional season by far, scoring 22 goals in 26 games to become the English top flight’s second-best goalscorer. Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp is expected to again rely on these two forwards to provide the goals for his club.
Four players will be unavailable for Klopp in this match. Three of them, Ragnar Klavan (thigh), Nathaniel Clyne (back), and Joe Gomez (knee), are due to injuries, while Emre Can is out because of a one-game suspension.
Predicted Lineup
Here is the potential starting 11 for both sides, via 101 Great Goals:
Porto starting lineup (4-2-3-1 formation): Sa; Telles, Marcano, Reyes, M. Pereira; Herrera, Torres; Brahimi, Oliveira, R. Pereira; Marega.
Liverpool starting lineup (4-3-2-1 formation): Karius; Robertson, Van Dijk, Matip, Alexander-Arnold; Wijnaldum, Henderson, Milner; Mane, Salah; Firmino.
Odds
Here are the odds, per Daily Star:
Porto – 2-1
Liverpool – 5-4
Draw – 5-2
