FC Porto host Manchester City in Champions League opener | OneFootball

Manchester City travel to the Dragão Stadium this Tuesday for the opening matchday of the Champions League (8pm, Sport TV5). Diogo Costa expects “a competitive and difficult match” against “a team of great value with very strong individual players”. “We respect the opponent, but we are capable of competing and we are prepared to face them with great humility,” says the captain, who wants to “give a very strong display of what FC Porto are” throughout the 90 minutes of “a true Champions League match”.

Back in the Champions League “It’s a competition we hadn’t been involved in for some time and one we’ve missed playing in. Every player wants to play on a stage like this. It will be a true Champions League match. We know we’re going to play against the best teams in the world. It will be a competitive game, but we want to show our DNA. We expect a difficult match. We respect Manchester City, but we are capable of competing. We know our strengths and weaknesses, as well as theirs, and we want to make the most of them.”

The importance of the goalkeeper “We adapt every week to the opponent we’re going to face. Manchester City are a team of great value with very strong individual players. We’re prepared for what they’re going to bring and to face them with great humility. We know we have to work very hard, stay focused and make as few mistakes as possible. In the Champions League, even the smallest mistake is costly. We are capable, we want to compete and show our DNA.”

The support of the fans “I feel the affection of the Porto fans and that makes me very happy. It gives me even more motivation knowing that I’m supported by so many people. It makes me very happy to see Porto fans happy.”

The duel with Erling Haaland “When we play in the Champions League, we already know we’re going to face the best, but in this case we’re talking about one of the best strikers in the world, or maybe the best. On my part, that requires a different kind of attention. However, my humility is always the same and I prepare in the same way whether it’s against Moreirense FC or Manchester City. I work in the same way and analyse the same videos, but I feel huge motivation to compete against them.”

The approach to adopt “The motivation of playing in the Champions League, in itself, already gives us the necessary alertness almost unconsciously. We have to be in the best possible shape during the match. What I try to get across to the team is that mistakes are punished heavily in the Champions League. The motivation already keeps us alert, but then we also have to know how to calm the group, enjoy the experience and have the composure needed to do our job properly. We will want to compete and show our DNA.”

A solid defensive line “Communication is always an important factor in defence, as are attitude and concentration. We’re going to pay special attention to Manchester City because they are a team of great value, but we always work in the same way and prepare every match in the same way in order to compete.”

The challenge against English teams “Whether we’ll be able to win or not, I don’t know, but we are capable of competing with this team. We already proved it against Arsenal, but of course the context is different because we have different players. It will be different. We know we are capable of competing with them and that we have the legs to run. That’s what we want to show tomorrow.”

Goals in the competition “Given our history in the Champions League, it’s only natural that we want to reach the quarter-finals, but we have the humility to understand that we have to take it game by game, bearing in mind the teams we’re going to face. We want to give a very strong display of what FC Porto are and of our DNA. Our goal is to go as far as possible.”

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇵🇹 here.