Preview: Royal Antwerp vs. Porto - prediction, team news, lineups

Royal Antwerp will attempt to claim their first-ever points in the Champions League group stage when they welcome Porto to Bosuilstadion on Wednesday.

The Belgium side are currently languishing at the foot of Group H, while their Portuguese opponents are in second position with three points to their name after two matches.

Match preview

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After beating Greek outfit AEK Athens in qualifying to make club history, Antwerp endured a brutal examination against Barcelona in their first-ever Champions League group game, falling to a heavy 5-0 defeat at the Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys.

Not only did that demoralising loss end a six-game unbeaten run, but it also sent Antwerp spiralling into a poor spell of form, with their last seven competitive matches yielding a solitary victory, which took place before the international break against Eupen.

Prior to their commanding 4-1 win over Eupen, Mark van Bommel's side appeared to be on course to claim maximum points in their second group game against Shakhtar Donetsk, as goals from Arbnor Muja and Michel-Ange Balikwisha put the Belgian champions 2-0 up inside 35 minutes.

However, they lost their composure and capitulated after the half-time interval, as a resurgent Shakhtar side netted three goals to turn the contest on its head, before Antwerp's misery was compounded in the seventh minute of stoppage-time when Toby Alderweireld missed a penalty with the last kick of the game to ensure that the encounter resulted in a narrow defeat.

After losing 3-2 in Saturday's league clash with Sporting Charleroi, the hosts are low on confidence ahead of Wednesday's encounter, but they have shown in the past that they can produce resolute performances in front of their own supporters, having recorded four clean sheets in their last six home games in UEFA club competitions.

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La Liga champions Barcelona may be favourites to win the group, but Porto's European pedigree suggests that they should at least be targeting second spot after reaching the knockout rounds in five of their last six appearances in the main draw.

The Portuguese giants could not have wished for a better start to their European campaign, as a Galeno brace and a Mehdi Taremi strike guided them to a 3-1 victory over Shakhtar Donetsk on matchday one.

Unfortunately for Sergio Conceicao's side, they were unable to back up that result in their second group game against Barcelona, with the cagey home affair decided by Ferran Torres's strike in first-half stoppage time.

Since losing out to the Catalan giants, Porto have got back on track with consecutive victories, edging out Portimonense in a league encounter, before beating fourth-tier Vilar de Perdizes 2-0 in Friday's Taca de Portugal tie.

The Dragons would have wanted to win by a larger scoreline against their lower-league opponents, but as a result of a second straight clean sheet, Porto's backline have not conceded more than one goal in any of their last 11 competitive matches, highlighting one of their main strengths ahead of Wednesday's contest.

While they are preparing to face Antwerp for the first time in a competitive match, the two-time European champions have won their previous three away games against Belgium opposition, beating Genk 3-0 in August 2010, before getting the better of Club Brugge in 2016 and 2022.

Team News

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Van Bommel has a number of injury concerns ahead of Wednesday's fixture, with Ritchie De Laet, Jacob Ondrejka, Sam Vines, Kobe Corbanie, Davino Verhulst and Bjorn Engels all set to miss out.

Midfielder Mandela Keita added his name to the absentee list at the weekend after he was forced off in the first half of the defeat to Charleroi.

Keita's absence provides Van Bommel with a considerable headache due to his lack of options in midfield, but the Antwerp boss may opt to give Alhassan Yusuf his first Champions League start.

In the opposing dugout, Conceicao will have to make do without the defensive qualities of Pepe (muscle), Zaidu Sanusi (muscle), Ivan Marcano (knee) and Wendell (Achilles).

Brazilian attacker Gabriel Veron remains unavailable for the trip to Belgium, while Stephen Eustaquio and Ivan Jaime are unlikely to feature after missing the 2-0 win over Vilar de Perdizes.

Conceicao made a number of changes for Friday's cup win, but the likes of Diogo Costa, Alan Varela, Evanilson and Taremi are set to return to the starting XI for the trip to Belgium.

Royal Antwerp possible starting lineup:

Butez; Bataille, Alderweireld, Coulibaly, Wijndal; Vermeeren, Yusuf, Ekkelenkamp; Muja, Balikwisha, Janssen

Porto possible starting lineup:

Costa; Mario, Carmo, Cardoso, Sanchez; Pepe, Varela, Nico, Galeno; Taremi, Evanilson

We say: Royal Antwerp 0-2 Porto

Antwerp have shown some defensive vulnerabilities in their opening two group games, and we believe that a shaky backline could be their downfall on Wednesday.

In contrast to their hosts, Porto are usually a hard team to break down, and we think that their defensive resilience will lay the foundations for a crucial victory.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.