FC Porto train in heavy rain, missing Nehuén Pérez and Luuk de Jong | OneFootball

At the end of Wednesday morning, FC Porto's first team held their last training session in Portugal before departing for the Netherlands, where they will face Utrecht in the fourth round of the Europa League group stage.

The training session, marked by heavy rain at the Jorge Costa Training and Sports Development Center in Olival, had the first 15 minutes open to the media and brought no surprises: the squad remains without Nehuén Pérez and Luuk de Jong.

The Argentine central defender continues his recovery after surgery for a complete rupture of the Achilles tendon, limiting him to treatments and gym work; his participation this season is, at this point, practically ruled out.

The Dutch forward, on the other hand, trained in a limited capacity due to a sprain of the internal lateral ligament in his left knee, which has kept him off the pitch since the 2-1 victory over Sporting at the José Alvalade Stadium on August 30.

After three rounds, FC Porto occupies 15th place in the Europa League group stage, with six points earned against Salzburg (1-0 win), Red Star (2-1 win), and Nottingham Forest (the only defeat of the season so far, 2-0).

The Dragons share this position with Brann, Celta de Vigo, Aston Villa, Lille, Go Ahead Eagles, Young Boys, and Fenerbahçe, standing three points behind the group of leaders composed of Sporting de Braga (the only other Portuguese team in the competition), Olympique Lyon (coached by Portuguese manager Paulo Fonseca), and Midtjylland.

Utrecht, on the other hand, is going through a more delicate phase: like Nice, Salzburg, and Rangers, they are so far one of the teams without any points, occupying the last position in the table.

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