The quarterfinals of the UEFA Champions League are on the line on Tuesday, and it’s anyone’s to take when FC Porto and FC Basel take the pitch at the Estadio do Dragao. The two teams are deadlocked at a goal apiece after their first leg in Switzerland ended in a 1-1 tie. Now they move on to Portugal where Porto will have the slight advantage playing in front of their home fans with the quarterfinals at stake.
Unthinkably, Porto is unbeaten thus far in the Champions League through nine matches. They come into the game looking to extend that streak to ten and win on their home turf in order to advance to the round of eight. However, the Portuguese club is expected to be without World Cup hero, Jackson Martinez. The Colombian star is the leading scorer on the team and one of the top goal scorers in the Champions League with six. He suffered an unfortunate groin injury last Friday and likely will be out of Tuesday’s match.
With Jackson out, Basel will look to upset the undefeated side and advance to the quarterfinals of the Champions League for the first time in team history. The Swiss side will have to score at least one goal to do that, and will need two goals if they surrender one to Porto. In a twist of irony, Basel’s manager Paulo Sousa is a Portuguese native and played on the national team for over 14 years.
Sousa will now have to eliminate the only Portuguese team left in the tournament and break the hearts of his home country in order for his team to advance.
“We can present ourselves in Porto at our best,” said Sousa of the match. “We have to come back again to our near best level of performance.”
Prediction: 1-1 FC Porto advances.
The match is set to kick off at 3:30PM EST from Estadio do Dragao in Porto, Portugal. It will air live on Fox Sports 2 and can be live streamed online here. If you prefer to watch the game on your phone, you can download the Fox Sports Go app.
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