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Porto
Champions League | Round of 16
Feb 22, 2017 at 7.45pm UK
 
Juventus logo

0-2


Telles (27')
FT(HT: 0-0)
Pjaca (72'), Alves (74')

Ten-man Porto made to pay by Juventus at Estadio do Dragao

Marko Pjaca and Dani Alves come off the bench to score second-half goals for Juventus in their 2-0 first-leg win over Porto in the last 16 of the Champions League.

Two goals in two second-half minutes have helped Juventus to a 2-0 win over Porto in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie at Estadio do Dragao.

The Dragons had their work cut out since midway through the first half following a red card shown to Alex Telles, allowing the Old Lady to swing the tie in their favour.

After struggling to truly break their opponents down, Marko Pjaca came off the bench to score his first goal for the club and Dani Alves did likewise, adding a second in quick succession to see Juve become the first Italian side in six attempts to leave here with victory.

The biggest talking point of a goalless first half arrived 25 minutes in after Telles picked up two needless cautions in the space of 74 seconds to see his marching orders.

Referee Felix Brych was quickly surrounded by Porto players but the brave call looked to be correct on both occasions, leaving the hosts with a big task to ensure that the tie did not get away from them.

Prior to the sending-off, Paulo Dybala fired over from a promising position with the only real attempt up to that point, slipping as he made contact with the ball right on the edge of the area.

It was all one-way traffic from the moment Telles made his way down the tunnel, though, with Juventus quickly racking up their shot tally and nearly finding a breakthrough when a well-worked free kick was sent spinning inches wide by Juan Cuadrado.

Top scorer Andre Silva was the man sacrificed by Nuno Espirito Santo in what was fast turning into a one-sided affair, but both Miralem Pjanic and Sami Khedira failed to truly test Iker Casillas from their openings.

Casillas, up against another goalkeeping great in Gianluigi Buffon for the 17th time, was called into action to push aside Gonzalo Higuain's first-time shot 42 minutes in; the reaction stop down low was made all the more impressive due to a deflection off Filipe on its way through.

The Dragons were desperately holding out for half time, but before the whistle was blown Juve struck the post through a well-hit Dybala strike from range, which got the beating of Casillas but was kept out by the frame of the goal.

Dybala thought that he had gone one better just 60 seconds into the second half, but the offside flag went up to deny him his second Champions League goal of the season.

Porto, who sit second in the Primeira Liga after losing one game all season, mustered a rare opening of their own 55 minutes in as Hector Herrera nodded wide at the back post when picked out from deep.

It was the Bianconeri who found themselves on top in the battle of two previous European Cup winners, with Higuain and Khedira both sending shots wide before the eventual breakthrough arrived.

Porto had not conceded in each of their last three European outings but, at a man disadvantage, a couple of subs from Massimiliano Allegri turned the game - and indeed the tie - on its head.

Pjaca first got on the end of a fortunate bounce in the box to sweep past Casillas, before Alves bagged a second soon after with his first touches of the ball after getting on the end of Alex Sandro's cross.

Only once in their last six appearances in the Champions League have Porto made it through, and their hopes of progressing this time around should have been put to bed when Khedira was slotted through, but his failure to find the net means that it is not quite over yet ahead of next month's reverse fixture.

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