Tuesday September 18, 2012 Group Stage: Group A Finished Maksimir

Dinamo Zagreb 0 - 2 FC Porto

  • Lucho González 41’
  • Defour 90’

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  1. Porto cruise past disappointing Dinamo

    Porto cruise past disappointing Dinamo

    Porto were the much better team as they ran out comfortable 2-0 winners in their Champions League Group A opener against Dinamo Zagreb. More

  • Live Commentary

    Time:90'
    • Dinamo Zagreb
    • FC Porto
    • 90+3' The referee blows the whistle for full time. Porto run out comfortable winners. Thanks for joining us.
    • 90+2' GOAL FOR PORTO! Defour puts the game beyond doubt. Dinamo push forward in search for an equaliser but give the ball away too easily and are caught on the attack. Atsu bursts down the left and rolls the ball wide into the path of Defour who takes one touch before lifting the ball over the onrushing Kelava.
    • 90+1' The fourth official holds up the board to signal three minutes of stoppage time. There have not been a great deal of stoppages but both sides have made a number of substitutions.
    • 90' Maicon's pass back to Helton is quite weak and Carrasco gives his all to get there ahead of the visitng custodian. He's not quite quick enough, though, and the keeper sends the ball long.
    • 89' The visitors will look to shut up shop and close this game out now, especially with the introduction of the French Under-21 international.
    • 88' James Rodriguez makes way as Eliaquim Mangala, the French defender, is introduced.
    • 86' Moutinho has a go at goal from range. The midfielder has been one of the stand-out players tonight but he's not had his shooting boots on. The shot balloons over the bar.
    • 85' CHANCE FOR KLEBER!! He's looked lively since he's come on. The substitute dances through a number of challenges on the 18-yard line, nutmegs a defender and drills a shot at the feet of Kelava.
    • 83' The Zagreb crowd have quietened down considerably in the last few moments. Porto have possession and will be looking to close this game out.
    • 82' Maicon receives the ball almost on the edge of his own penalty area and is allowed to roam around in the Porto half. There’s no pass on so he lumps it forward. The pass is poor with Simunic allowing it to roll to Kelava.
    • 81' The home crowd are making a lot of noise. They’re really trying to spur their team on and it looks to be working at the moment. Porto are dropping deep but are coping well as of yet.
    • 80' Adrian Calello comes off. Ante Cacic sends on Mateo Kovacic as Dinamo search for a late equaliser.
    • 78' HUGE CHANCE!! Cop sends in a devilish ball from the left flank and it has Helton in a lot of trouble. The keeper gets under it which allows Carrasco a free header at goal. The contact on the ball is nowhere near good enough, allowing Helton to recover.
    • 77' Jackson Martinez makes way for Kleber, who has only made one substitute appearance for Porto this season.
    • 76' The Croatians have sat back throughout the majority of this match but appear to really be giving it a go now. They’re attacking in numbers whenever they can get hold of the ball. Atsu fouls Vida to stop the hosts in their tracks.
    • 75' Sammir pulls away from Alex Sandro and is played through. His first touch takes him away from goal meaning he can only cross rather than shoot. The centre is weak and is claimed by the diving Helton.
    • 74' Atsu is instantly in the thick of the action. He drifts in off the right, controls the ball well and turns his man before rifling a shot at goal. The shot isn’t quite as good as the football leading up to it and drifts wide.
    • 73' Christian Atsu replaces Silvestre Varela, who has worked very hard tonight. Atsu makes his Champions League debut.
    • 71' James wriggles away down the left, beats his man one-too-many-times and then drills the ball past Kelava but can't beat Simunic.
    • 70' Oh dear, Martinez really mis-times his jump and can’t get his header anywhere near the target from James fabulous ball. It hits the back of the striker’s head and bounces away from goal.
    • 69' Vida, under pressure from James, punts the ball long and it falls into the path of the substitute Carrasco. Maicon comes across and smashes the ball into the stands and away from danger.
    • 67' Lucho and Moutinho combine very well on the right as the Portuguese side show their array of talent. Lucho shimmies inside and drags a left footed shot into the feet of the first defender.
    • 66' After that frantic thirty seconds, Porto have got the ball down on the floor and are trading passes again. Ante Rukavina is replaced by Bryan Carrasco as Dinamo make their second change of the night.
    • 65' Porto finally settle down and manage to clear the ball. The ball is worked deep into the Dinamo half and James does well to win a corner. Kelava shows confidence for the first time tonight to come and claim the ball.
    • 63' GREAT DOUBLE SAVE FROM HELTON! The resulting corner flies towards the near post. It’s not dealt with which allows Rukavina to acrobatically volley at goal from point-blank range. Helton sticks out an arm and palms it up into the air before palming it over the bar.
    • 62' Sammir whips a set-piece onto the edge of the six yard box. Maicon volleys out for a corner.
    • 61' Martinez attempts to find some space between Simunic and Tonel. Varela rolls the ball into him but Simunic, who has been excellent so far, reads the pass and regains possession for his team.
    • 60' Moutinho is fouled 25 yards from goal. He opts to take it himself and will look to test the shaky Kelava. The free kick is poor, however, and sails over the bar.
    • 59' With Ademi now off, there’ll more than likely be a bit more space in the centre of the pitch which will allow for Defour, Lucho and Moutinho to take advantage.
    • 58' The youngster Arijan Ademi is replaced by Fatos Beqiraj. The hosts will now move to a more orthodox 4-4-2.
    • 57' Porto are looking far more assured now. They’ve got their goal and look very confident and comfortable on the ball.
    • 55' The visitors play the corner short but lose the ball straight away. Dinamo go on the attack in numbers. Cop peels away from his man on the left and receives it, taking it in his stride as he gallops towards goal. The whistle sounds and offside is given. Cop is livid and rightly so – replays show that he was onside.
    • 54' Moutinho gathers the ball in the centre circle and even has time to slip before recovering and sending Varela down the left. The resulting cross yields a corner.
    • 53' Dinamo started brightly but have now reverted back to the same style as they adopted in the first half. They’ve got 10 men behind the ball and are sitting deep.
    • 52' Martinez drops deep to receive the ball and looks to find Lucho with a round-the-corner ball but the striker takes too long to play it and Lucho is flagged offside.
    • 51' Helton has been a bystander for almost the entirety of the match so far. He receives a pass from the very impressive Alex Sandro and plays it long to the feet of James.
    • 50' The Croatians have started quite positively in these opening minutes. They know that they need a goal and are committing men further up the pitch. A great response from the trailing side.
    • 49' Great defending from the hosts. Varela and Moutinho play the corner short and trade a quick one-two as they advance on goal. The ball is smashed across the face of the goal but is cleared.
    • 48' Varela plays a neat ball straight into the bath of Martinez, whose first touch isn’t great and allows Simunic to recover and poke the ball out for a corner.
    • 47' James finds some space on the left and attempts a whipped ball towards Martinez. Simunic intercepts and heads the ball back to the goalkeeper.
    • 46' Porto get the second half under way.
    • 45' Referee Daniele Orsato puts an end to the first half.
    • 44' The hosts' game plan for this first half was so very close to paying off but they now look like they can't wait for the referee to blow the whistle. They punt the ball up field whenever they get hold of it and will not want to concede another in these dying minutes.
    • 43' Dinamo keeper Kelava looked very nervous as he led his side out tonight. He really hasn't had a great deal to do but made two huge mistakes in just a number of minutes and was only punished for one of them.
    • 42' Moments before that, jackson Martinez should have scored as Kelava mis-controlled a back pass and let the Porto man in. The keeper tried to recover but couldn't get there. All Martinez had to do was stroke the ball into the net but he dwelled on it and allowed Vida to clear.
    • 41' GOAL!! Lucho scores for Porto. Alex Sandro gets into a good crossing position and drills the ball low and hard. Kelava, who has looked nervous throughout this first half, palms the ball straight into the path of the Argentine who side-foots home from 6 yards.
    • 39' Porto really do play the ball around well. It looks like a training exercise at times. Lopez, Defour and Moutinho exchange some slick short passes as they advance on the Dinamo goal. The ball comes loose, however, and the home side recover.
    • 38' Varela and James look to break in a two-on-one situation just inside the hosts’ half. Simunic shows his experience to cut the ball out and attempt to ignite an attack for Dinamo.
    • 37' Varela finds some space away from his marker and is sent down the right. He whips a ball into the box but Simunic sticks out a leg which sends the ball into the welcoming hands of Kelava. That could have gone anywhere.
    • 36' Porto have had 67% of possession so far. That really tells you what the hosts’ game plan is. They’re doing pretty well so far and a point from this game would be a decent result. But if they are looking to progress in this competition then they’ll need to do a fair bit more than this.
    • 35' Lucho lofts a ball into the path of the Moutinho, who initially looks to take a heavy tackle, but upon watching the replay it was a fair challenge. He did land quite heavily, though.
    • 33' Apart from that glimpse of magic that nearly resulted in a goal earlier on, Cop has had to feed from scraps. Aimless balls are being sent his way and he is having no luck in getting the ball down.
    • 32' Steven Defour has just sat back throughout this opening half-hour and is just playing the ball around the park with complete ease. As I say that he rolls one straight out of touch. Typical.
    • 31' Neither keeper has had to do a single thing yet - something Ante Cacic is sure to be pleased with.
    • 30' James' whipped free-kick from the right is sent into a great area. Simunic rises highest to head away. What a fantastic header, too, as the ball reaches the halfway line.
    • 29' Moutinho’s reverse pass is dummied by James as Varela looks to create enough space to have a shot. The ball ricochets off the defender and into the arm of the winger as the referee adjudges it to be intentional and blows the whistle.
    • 27' Moutinho fools two of the Dinamo midfielders with a Cruyff turn. The much-coveted midfielder feels a slight bit of contact and hits the deck. Not a great deal in it, but enough...
    • 26' Kelava comes rushing off his line chasing a lofted ball into the box. He gets absolutely nowhere near it and puts his team in danger. Tonel obviously has some idea that the keeper is going to miss it and drops short to clear.
    • 25' Porto look like the home side at the minute. The hosts may need to find a plan B if this is how they had aimed to challenge Porto. They can’t sit back this deep all night, surely?
    • 23' James switches flanks following the corner and produces a quick turn of pace to beat his man and send in a cross. Moutinho’s diving header is wayward and nearly rolls out for a throw-in.
    • 22' The Portuguese champions are really passing it around well. Dinamo aren’t helping themselves, though. They keep giving the ball away. Varela wins another corner.
    • 21' Porto looked to have settled quite well. The home side have a lot of men behind the ball and are pressing well. Varela gets a free run down the right and sends a low cross into the box. Martinez is first to it but can’t get decent contact on the ball.
    • 19' Centre-half Maicon surges forward as the visitors look to build some pressure. The Porto nunmber four picks up the ball 30 yards from goal and decides to have a go. It flies about 30 yards over the bar.
    • 18' Varela is up and about again now. He's trying to run it off but looks uncomfortable.
    • 17' A short pass puts Varela in a bit of danger as he is clattered by a strong challenge from Pivaric. The winger is in a heap on the floor and looks in a bit of pain.
    • 16' Varela attempts to spark a bit of life into the match with a dazzling run on the right wing. He beats his first man and then the covering defender but drags a shot well wide.
    • 15' Alex Sandro could have gone into the book early on here. Rukavina has his back towards goal and receives the ball. The Porto defender really doesn’t show a lot of grace as he flies through the back of him.
    • 14' From the goal kick the homes side go on the attack. The ball starts on the right before being switched to the left. Cop drops deep, beats his man and cuts inside to blast a fierce shot towards the near post. It flashes just wide.
    • 13' Defour, Varela and Lucho show their range of quick-passing as they look to get around their opposition. Moutinho gets in on the action but tries a little flick. It doesn’t go well as the ball rolls out for a goal kick.
    • 11' The corner is wasted as it fails to beat the first man. The home crowd appeal for a penalty but the Italian referee doesn't look interested.
    • 10' Samir trades a one-two with Rukavina and sends a shot goalwards from 20 yards. Otamendi’s outstretched leg sees it out for a corner
    • 9' Moutinho already looks like he’s up for this. He beats his man three times on the by-line and then attempts a cross but it’s sent out into touch for a corner.
    • 8' Defour some quick feet and produces a double drag-back before finding Varela down the right. The winger sends in an inviting ball but it's headed away at the near post.
    • 7' Porto really don't look in any hurry here. They look like they're content to play it around, waiting for that gap to appear.
    • 6' Vida gallops down the right flank before looking up and spraying a glorious ball across the pitch. Cop then gets the ball down the left and pulls it back towards the penalty spot. Miguel Lopes is on hand to clear.
    • 5' Maicon loses the ball deep in his own half and the hosts go on the attack. The Porto man recovers well, though, and wins back possession on the edge of his own penalty area.
    • 4' The Zagreb right-back, Vida, has seen quite a lot of the ball already in these opening minutes. He exchanges a couple of passes with Ademi before sending it long.
    • 3' The hosts are looking to get hold of the ball and keep it in these opening minutes. They're taking their time and playing it around with ease.
    • 2' Porto, who are top seeds in this group will be hot favourites to win this game comfortably. But, already, the small crowd are making a lot of noise and are getting behind their team.
    • 1' Italian referee Daniele Orsata, who makes his Champions league debut tonight, blows the whistle to get the game under way.
    • 19:44 As the players line up alongside one another, it's clear to see that there are a huge number of seats still available throughout this stadium.
    • 19:41 The players are making their way out onto the pitch. We're just moments away from kick off now.
    • 19:40 Porto line up for this match without talismanic Brazilian front-man, Hulk, who transferred to Zenit St. Petersburg in the summer. Despite this loss, they have plenty of faith in their squad with Portuguese forward Silvestre Varela signing a contract extension earlier this month – keeping him at the club until June 2016. Zenit spend €80 million on Hulk, Witsel
    • 19:35 These two sides have met four times previously in the Champions League, with both teams picking up two victories apiece. Porto, however, scored six goals throughout those four ties whilst Dinamo could only manage the five.
    • 19:30 The Croatian club are still searching for their first matchday one victory. Their first two appearances in this competition ended with goalless draws – the first at home to Ajax in ‘98/99 and the second to then Champions Manchester United. They lost their only other opening round tie.
    • 19:25 The Portuguese champions, who have two European cups to their name, are entering this stage for the 17th time in their history and will look to better their record of just two victories out of their last eight matchday one fixtures.
    • 19:20 These two sides are current champions of their respective leagues. Dinamo claimed a seventh successive league trophy last year and won their league cup, too, but are only appearing in the group stage of this competition for the fourth time.
    • 19:15 Dinamo Zagreb, who shipped a whopping 22 goals in last season’s group stage – a Champions League record –will be looking to show more solidarity in this opening Group A tie.
    • 19:10 So, exactly 122 days after Chelsea lifted the famous trophy for the first time in the club’s history, we’re back for the start of what is sure to be another fascinating season of Europe’s elite club competition.
    • 19:05 The teams are in. Dinamo Zagreb line up as follows: Ivan Kelava; Josip Pivarić, Josip Šimunić, Tonel, Domagoj Vida ; Marcelo Brozović, Adrián Calello, Arijan Ademi; Sammir, Ante Rukavina, Duje Čop // FC Porto;Helton; Alex Sandro, Nicolás Otamendi, Maicon, Miguel Lopes; João Moutinho, Steven Defour, Lucho González; James Rodríguez, Silvestre Varela, Jackson Martinez
    • 19:00 Good evening and welcome to LIVE commentary of the Champions League Group A opening-round match between Dinamo Zagreb and FC Porto at the Stadion Maksimir.

  • Summary

    • 90+2' GOAL FOR PORTO! Defour puts the game beyond doubt. Dinamo push forward in search for an equaliser but give the ball away too easily and are caught on the attack. Atsu bursts down the left and rolls the ball wide into the path of Defour who takes one touch before lifting the ball over the onrushing Kelava.
    • 85' CHANCE FOR KLEBER!! He's looked lively since he's come on. The substitute dances through a number of challenges on the 18-yard line, nutmegs a defender and drills a shot at the feet of Kelava.
    • 78' HUGE CHANCE!! Cop sends in a devilish ball from the left flank and it has Helton in a lot of trouble. The keeper gets under it which allows Carrasco a free header at goal. The contact on the ball is nowhere near good enough, allowing Helton to recover.
    • 75' Sammir pulls away from Alex Sandro and is played through. His first touch takes him away from goal meaning he can only cross rather than shoot. The centre is weak and is claimed by the diving Helton.
    • 71' James wriggles away down the left, beats his man one-too-many-times and then drills the ball past Kelava but can't beat Simunic.
    • 63' GREAT DOUBLE SAVE FROM HELTON! The resulting corner flies towards the near post. It’s not dealt with which allows Rukavina to acrobatically volley at goal from point-blank range. Helton sticks out an arm and palms it up into the air before palming it over the bar.
    • 60' Moutinho is fouled 25 yards from goal. He opts to take it himself and will look to test the shaky Kelava. The free kick is poor, however, and sails over the bar.
    • 49' Great defending from the hosts. Varela and Moutinho play the corner short and trade a quick one-two as they advance on goal. The ball is smashed across the face of the goal but is cleared.
    • 42' Moments before that, jackson Martinez should have scored as Kelava mis-controlled a back pass and let the Porto man in. The keeper tried to recover but couldn't get there. All Martinez had to do was stroke the ball into the net but he dwelled on it and allowed Vida to clear.
    • 41' GOAL!! Lucho scores for Porto. Alex Sandro gets into a good crossing position and drills the ball low and hard. Kelava, who has looked nervous throughout this first half, palms the ball straight into the path of the Argentine who side-foots home from 6 yards.
    • 37' Varela finds some space away from his marker and is sent down the right. He whips a ball into the box but Simunic sticks out a leg which sends the ball into the welcoming hands of Kelava. That could have gone anywhere.
    • 26' Kelava comes rushing off his line chasing a lofted ball into the box. He gets absolutely nowhere near it and puts his team in danger. Tonel obviously has some idea that the keeper is going to miss it and drops short to clear.
    • 19' Centre-half Maicon surges forward as the visitors look to build some pressure. The Porto nunmber four picks up the ball 30 yards from goal and decides to have a go. It flies about 30 yards over the bar.
    • 14' From the goal kick the homes side go on the attack. The ball starts on the right before being switched to the left. Cop drops deep, beats his man and cuts inside to blast a fierce shot towards the near post. It flashes just wide.

Team Line-up & Ratings

  • Dinamo Zagreb

    Manager: Ante Cacic

  • FC Porto

    Manager: Vítor Pereira

  • Line-up

    Live Team Line-Up

  • Rate Players

    Rate Players

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    • Player Y! Users Expert My Rating
      Goalkeeper
      4 3
      Defenders
      4.6 5
      7.8 6
      4.6 9
      5.5 5
      Midfielders
      Substitution Out80′ 4 4
      Substitution Out58′ 4 4
      4 4
      Strikers
      Substitution Out67′ 7 6
      5.5 5
      4 6
      Subs
      Substitution In58′ - 5
      Substitution In80′ - 5
      Substitution In67′ - 4
    • Player Y! Users Expert My Rating
      Goalkeeper
      5.4 5
      Defenders
      7.1 6
      5.4 6
      6.4 7
      6.2 8
      Midfielders
      Goal 6.1 7
      Goal 7.1 7
      7 7
      Strikers
      Substitution Out72′ 7.4 8
      Substitution Out88′ 7.2 6
      Substitution Out78′ 6.8 7
      Subs
      Substitution In88′ 5.3 5
      Substitution In78′ 6.3 7
      Substitution In72′ 8 7

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  1. Go porto

    From Evans E, on Tue 18 Sep 20:33
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