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Big Match Feature: Porto v Juventus

football17 February 2021 09:00
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There is a wealth of Uefa Champions League knockout experience between Porto and Juventus, although history suggests the Italian side hold the edge for their round of 16 tie. Catch the action live on SuperSport with live streaming through DStv and Showmax.

Porto finished second behind Manchester City in group C, conceding only three goals and winning four of their six matches as they progressed from the Uefa Champions League group stage to the knockout phase for the fourth time in a row.

Juve, who are in the last 16 for the seventh successive season, are unbeaten in their five previous matches against the Portuguese side (W4 D1) and come into this tie having finished first in group G thanks to a remarkable matchday six triumph at Barcelona.

PREVIOUS MEETINGS

Juventus beat Porto 2-0 away and 1-0 at home in the 2016-17 Uefa Champions League round of 16. Marko Pjaca and Dani Alves were on target in the first leg at the Estádio do Dragão, before Paulo Dybala's 42nd-minute penalty settled the second game at the Juventus Stadium.

Juve took four points off Porto in the 2001-02 Uefa Champions League first group stage, following up a 0-0 draw in Portugal with a 3-1 victory in Turin. Clayton struck an early goal for Octávio Machado's visitors before Alessandro Del Piero and Paolo Montero turned the game for Marcello Lippi's Juve. David Trezeguet sealed the victory late on.

The Bianconeri also beat Porto 2-1 in the 1984 European Cup Winners' Cup final in Basel. Beniamino Vignola's early effort was cancelled out as António Morais's Porto drew level through António Sousa but Zbigniew Boniek won it for Giovanni Trapattoni's Juventus with a goal just before half-time.

FORM GUIDE

PORTO

Porto are unbeaten in this season's Uefa Champions League since a 3-1 Matchday 1 defeat at Manchester City, winning the next three – at home against Olympiacos (2-0) and Marseille (3-0) plus a 2-0 victory in France – before a goalless draw against City in Portugal ensured they would finish in second place in group C. They made it five successive Uefa Champions League clean sheets with a 2-0 win at Olympiacos on matchday six.

The Dragons have not conceded a goal in the competition in 467 minutes.

This is Porto's 24th Uefa Champions League campaign, fewer only than Real Madrid and Barcelona (both 25). The Portuguese side have now qualified for the last 16 on each of their last four appearances in the group stage.

Porto's 2019-20 Uefa Champions League campaign lasted a single tie, Krasnodar beating them on away goals in the third qualifying round (1-0 a, 2-3 h). They went on to finish first in a Uefa Europa League section including Rangers, Young Boys and Feyenoord, but were beaten by Bayer Leverkusen in the round of 32 (1-2 a, 1-3 h).

Porto have lost four of their last 10 matches in the Uefa Champions League proper (W5 D1) and have won only four of their last nine home European matches (D2 L3).

Sérgio Conceição's side won the club's eighth domestic double in 2019-20, claiming Porto's 29th league title and a 17th Portuguese Cup.

Porto's record in the round of 16 is W4 L7; they have won only two of their last six ties although they were victorious in the most recent, against Roma in 2018/19 (1-2 a, 3-1 h aet).

That home win against Roma was Porto's sixth at their own ground in 11 round of 16 matches (D3 L2), after defeats against Juventus in 2016-17 and Liverpool 12 months later.

The 2017 defeat by Juventus in Portugal is Porto's sole reverse in their last nine home matches against Italian visitors (W4 D4).

JUVENTUS

This season Andrea Pirlo's side picked up 15 points to finish top of group G, a closing 3-0 win at Barcelona – 2-0 winners in Turin on Matchday 2 – enabling them to finish above the Spanish side on head-to-head record. Juve also recorded two victories against both Dynamo Kyiv (2-0 a, 3-0 h) and Ferencváros (4-1 a, 2-1 h).

Cristiano Ronaldo was on target against Ferencváros on matchday four and has now found the net in 16 consecutive editions of the Uefa Champions League, matching the feat of Lionel Messi and Karim Benzema.

Álvaro Morata is the joint leading scorer in this season's Uefa Champions League with six goals – the same number as Paris Saint-Germain forward Neymar, Erling Braut Haaland of Dortmund and Marcus Rashford of eliminated Manchester United.

Champions of Italy for a record ninth season in a row in 2019-20, and 36th time in all, this is Juve's 21st Uefa Champions League campaign; they have now reached the last 16 in 18 of those seasons, 2020-21 marking the seventh successive campaign in which they have progressed to the knockout phase.

The Bianconeri, under Maurizio Sarri, finished first in their section ahead of Atlético de Madrid in last season's competition, also with five wins in their six fixtures (D1) but bowed out in the round of 16, eliminated by Lyon on away goals (0-1 a, 2-1 h).

The Turin team have finished first in their Uefa Champions League section on 14 occasions, including in each of the last three seasons.

Winners in 1985 and 1996, Juventus have played in nine European Cup finals – losing a record seven, including all of their last five.

Juve have won five of their last six away European games (L1); the defeat at Lyon last season is their only reverse in the last eight such matches (W5 D2).

Juventus are in the Uefa Champions League round of 16 for the 12th time (W7 L4); last season's defeat by Lyon ended a run of three successive aggregate victories.

The Bianconeri's last trip to Portugal brought a 1-1 draw at Sporting CP in the 2017-18 Uefa Champions League group stage. That made their overall record against Portuguese sides W8 D3 L4; away it is W2 D2 L3. All four of those defeats came against Benfica.

Juve's record in two-legged knockout ties against Portuguese clubs is W3 L2.

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