FC Porto play their final card in the fight for Europa League last 16 | OneFootball

On the eighth and decisive matchday of the group stage, Sporting de Braga occupies fifth place with 16 points—two more than FC Porto, who are ninth, just below the direct qualification line for the round of 16. Both teams have already secured, at the very least, their continuation in the competition.

FC Porto has not managed to transfer the momentum shown in Portugal to the Europa League and risks having to play the playoff for access to the round of 16—reserved for teams ranked between 9th and 24th—even if they win at home against Rangers, who are 31st in the group stage and already out of qualification contention.

FC Porto depends on other results, particularly from Betis—eighth and the last team to secure direct passage—who also have 14 points; if the Spanish side beats Feyenoord, Porto will have to make up a one-goal deficit in the goal difference, which is the first tiebreaker criterion.

After victories over Salzburg, Red Star, Nice, and Malmö, draws with Utrecht and Plzen, and the defeat to Nottingham Forest, FC Porto can still avoid the playoff with a draw against Rangers—a team they have only beaten once in six encounters—although this scenario depends on a rather unlikely combination of results.

The second-placed team in the Scottish league—which includes Portuguese forward Youssef Chermiti in its squad—has only managed one victory in the Europa League (the most recent, against Ludogorets), along with five defeats and a draw, and should prioritize the fight for the national title rather than complicate the task for the team coached by Italian Francesco Farioli.

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