Sat second in Group B, Porto already qualified for the knock-out stages, going four points clear of Atletico with a 4-0 win in Bruges last time out. If they could better leaders Brugge's result in their corresponding match against Leverkusen, the Dragoes could finish as winners of the group.
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β FC Porto (@FCPorto) November 3, 2022
AtΓ© sΓ‘bado, DragΓ΅es π#FCPFCPF pic.twitter.com/QhyTLzOpfz
Mehdi Taremi was practically unplayable against Club Brugge, scoring twice and being involved in another as Porto shattered the Belgian side's previously impervious defence to pieces. The Iranian striker started up front for the hosts in this game alongside Evanilson, who scored their third in Belgium from the right wing.
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β FC Porto (@FCPorto) November 1, 2022
Antoine Griezmann scored a 101st-minute winner for Atleti when these two faced off in Madrid, but that crazy game in which all three goals came in second-half stoppage time was the Rojiblancos' only win of the competition so far. They also needed to better the result Leverkusen against Brugge if they were to remain in third and qualify for the Europa League.
Rodrigo de Paul's equalizer ensured Atleti a point out of their last match against Leverkusen, but it should have been much more. Yannick Carrasco, who scored their first, had an injury-time penalty saved before two rebound shots hit the bar and a Rojiblancos player, respectively, to deny Diego Simeone's men the victory. De Paul started alongside Axel Witsel in midfield while Carrasco was on the bench.
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β AtlΓ©tico de Madrid (
𧀠Oblak in goal
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π De Paul in midfield
β½οΈ JoΓ£o FΓ©lix in attack pic.twitter.com/UI2SY4K1W1@atletienglish) November 1, 2022
Atleti were unbeaten in their last five Champions League games against Porto, winning four of these, all during Diego Simeone's reign. The last time they lost to the Portuguese side in the competition was in 2009.
Porto took just five minutes to shatter their hope of playing in Europe. GOOOOOAAAAALLLL!!!! The Dragoes roar into the lead!!! Pepe drifted in-field and found Evanilson with a fantastic reverse ball into the box. The Brazilian hit an early ball across the face of the goal, and Taremi escaped the attention of Savic to tap it into an early nap! Atletico caught, but what clinical play from Porto to race into a 1-0 lead!
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β FC Porto (@FCPorto) November 1, 2022
π΅βͺ FC Porto 1-0 AtlΓ©tico Madrid#FCPAM #UCL #EASportsFifa pic.twitter.com/n0K9xkoraX
Club Brugge hadn't conceded a goal in this season's Champions League until Porto came to town, with Taremi breaking that record 33 minutes into the first half. It's taken him 28 less than that to open the scoring here, and although the Atleti defence isn't as feared as it once was, it's still remarkable how well Porto did to create that scoring chance!
Mehdi Taremi has been directly involved in seven goals in this season's Champions League, with five goals and two assists. This is the most by an Iranian player in a single season in the competition on record (since 2003-04). What a player! What performances! Remember the name! Not Mbappe, neither Haaland nor Benzema! An Iranian pulling the strings in the UCL.
Porto were undoubtedly the better side so far in that match. And they came earlier once again to haunt Atleti without giving them a chance to recover from the early shock. GOOOOOAAAALLL!!!! Porto, have a second!!! Sanusi's ball down the left found Galeno, and the Brazilian spun away from Savic as he burst forward. He entered the box and cut the ball back from the left to where Eustaquio arrived late to smash it beyond Oblak! A well-taken finish to a very well-worked goal, and Porto were 2-0 up and cruising here!
Atleti still had an hour to respond while having more possession of the ball than Porto, with 56.4 per cent but were doing little with it so far. They're yet to have a shot on target from two attempts, while Porto had done three times from five attempts, with two finding the net.
Atletico failed to score a first-half goal in this game, making that unwanted stat their fifth goalless first 45 in six group matches. No team has managed to do so more often in this season's Champions League.
Atleti had hardly had a half-chance, with Costa completely untested so far. And, as it stands, Porto were on course to win Group B, with Brugge and Leverkusen level in the corresponding fixture!
Time was flying, and Atleti was two minutes away from out of Europe. Luckily they had one back thanks to an own goal from Porto!!! Carrasco's in-swinging corner deflected off the back of Marcano's head, deceiving Costa and flying into the bottom corner!! The Porto rearguard were finally breached.
Three points for Porto, coupled with just one for Club Brugge, means the Dragoes finish their group stage campaign as winners after six games, with four wins yielding 12 points, and the top seed when the round of 16 is drawn. The news isn't as good for Atletico, who needed to better Leverkusen's result to progress to the Europa League. A draw for Leverkusen sees them draw level with Atleti on five points, and their superior head-to-head record means that Diego Simeone's men won't play in the knock-out stages of any European competition for the first time since 2010-11.
Taremi's opener got Porto on their way, as it did against Brugge, and the forward was once more the focal point of the side as they topped Group B! He finished the game with three shots on target from six attempts, compiling a total xG of 1.21, and played four key passes to create chances for his teammates. He was right in the thick of things, too, contesting a game-high 15 duels, eight of which came in the air, and winning the ball four times, all of which came in Atleti's defensive third.
