Porto (1) 1-4 (6) Liverpool - Wednesday 17th April, 2019 (QF 2nd Leg)

[ASF]

On 18/04/2019 at 01:06, Dr. Gonzo said:

Last year we seemed miles ahead of you over the two legs. This year... I think a 5 goal deficit in aggregate score is so fucking harsh on you. Unlike last year when we went away to you, you actually took the match to us in the first half of this match. Not many great chances, but still you'd had 13 or 14 shots to our 0... up until first goal. And at Anfield, you're just unlucky that none of Morega's 4 or 5 chances went in.

That lad's finishing is shite btw. At least it was against us, he wasted so many chances. The second half was a different story, momentum was well with us at that point. To the point where you pulling one back didn't even matter to the lads, they were determined for more goals after you scored.

I agree we were the best team over the 2 legs again... but I don't think you've done as bad as the big scoreline difference suggests.

Yeah, he's very wasteful. If he could improve that aspect of his game, he would be quite the forward.

Klopp being nice, saying that this was the most difficult tie Liverpool had faced. Obviously, it wasn't, but good to see him not making us feel even more little, than we were.

A small curiosity: Liverpool playing against Barcelona in the semis, means they will have played against the same opponents (us and Barça), at the same stages, like they did in the 2000/01 Uefa Cup.

[Dr. Gonzo]

31 minutes ago, ASF said:

Yeah, he's very wasteful. If he could improve that aspect of his game, he would be quite the forward.

Klopp being nice, saying that this was the most difficult tie Liverpool had faced. Obviously, it wasn't, but good to see him not making us feel even more little, than we were.

A small curiosity: Liverpool playing against Barcelona in the semis, means they will have played against the same opponents (us and Barça), at the same stages, like they did in the 2000/01 Uefa Cup.

Did he mean this year in the CL? He's probably right tbh. In the group stags, we were our worst enemy away from home - those poor results came off the back of poor performances rather than good performances from the opposition. Bayern Munich were hardly a threat - yeah, they drew at us Anfield but they posed barely anything in front of goal over both legs, other than floating that dangerous ball in that led to the Matip own goal. Both sides didn't create much at Anfield, but in Munich we dominated them over the whole 90 minutes.

You can't say that was the case against your Porto side at all.

You created a lot of chances against us. If not for Morega's shite finishing, which I agree... if he improved his finishing you're right - he'd be one hell of a forward. He makes so many chances just based on his pace, movement and physicality - he's a decent player, just needs to be more clinical and he'd be a very good player.

My takeaway from our CL matches last year were that we were miiiiiiles ahead of you last year. My takeaway from our CL matches this year is that you've got a good side that's capable of playing some very good football - our defense has been incredible this year and the number of chances you had against us was higher than some sides that have a lot more expensively assembled sides - I just think the players are a bit weak mentally. After Mane's goal went in, it seemed like that was it - it was done. In the second half the floodgates opened and it no longer mattered how well you'd played in the first leg or in the first half. That confidence from your side was gone and we found ourselves with the ball more and suddenly creating on the front foot the whole second half.

On another night, one or two of Morega's chances against us at Anfield would have gone in and changed the whole complexion of the tie. And had you approached the second leg the same way with an away goal or two, I don't think we'd have been as comfortable in soaking up all of that first half pressure. I know that's a whole lot of speculation... but I really just don't think the scoreline really reflected how much you'd improved against us since last year, and I think there's a good argument to be made that you were the most difficult opponent we've faced in the CL so far.

Also that's a weird fact... that was a good UEFA Cup final from our perspective, if I remember right. Although I remember it being nervy as fuck for us Liverpool fans. So hopefully history repeats itself a bit. But I'm not too confident in us getting passed Messi.

[The Artful Dodger]

To be fair once Mane's goal went in they would have had to score 4 in 60 minutes against a Liverpool side who've only conceded more than 2 once this season. Don't think it's weak mentally to be deflated. The tie was effectively done at Anfield, okay maybe if they'd scored in the first 20 minutes the atmosphere would have been incredible and Liverpool really on the rack but it was never likely.

[Dr. Gonzo]

1 hour ago, The Artful Dodger said:

To be fair once Mane's goal went in they would have had to score 4 in 60 minutes against a Liverpool side who've only conceded more than 2 once this season. Don't think it's weak mentally to be deflated. The tie was effectively done at Anfield, okay maybe if they'd scored in the first 20 minutes the atmosphere would have been incredible and Liverpool really on the rack but it was never likely.

Yeah that's a fair point. And didn't they turn over a first leg deficit against Roma to make it to the quarter finals? That indicates some mental toughness for sure.

But them getting spanked by bigger sides, when you've got Ajax turning over giants, and when Porto are typically a side that's not feared going to places you wouldn't expect to get results... maybe indicates an element of capitulation. And you can't really have that in the CL, Porto know this - they've won the competition before. The atmosphere at Porto was fantastic, even after we scored the away goal and their side capitulated. And sure, we were the better team over two legs... but I don't think their fans deserved to see them get battered with an aggregate scoreline like they did, when their performance in the first leg was just a bit unlucky and their first half performance in the second leg was very good.

They've got great fans and great support, and it's probably got to annoy them they've been knocked out by us again with a 5 goal deficit. But I mean... Porto aren't the first team ever to be knocked out after having played pretty decently and just not taking their chances, while another team does take it's chances and then builds up an impressive aggregate score over two legs. And they won't be the last.

I looked at Marega's goal record for Porto and... it's actually really impressive. So he must get shitloads of chances week in week out in the Portuguese league - and the defenses are almost certainly to be a lower standard than our excellent defense right now so that might play a part in terms of the quality of chances he gets overall in a match in the league compared to the CL. So I imagine that must make it a bit more irritating though for someone with a record like his to have wasted those chances in the first leg. But maybe it's just a case of struggling against a better side, I don't really know.

But I do think Porto looked a lot stronger than they did last year, even if we were still the better side over two legs. And I do think it's plausible that Porto are the most difficult side we've faced in the CL so far. I mean last year, it certainly seemed as though each stage of the CL got progressively harder for us...