Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal have finally returned to the first spot of the English Premier League table for the first time since Christmas last year, and their decent run of form will be crucial in the Arsenal vs. FC Porto continental encounter in the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 second leg, having lost the first leg 1-0 at Estádio do Dragão following Galeno’s strike right at the death of the game. Arteta’s Gunners will be hosting the Portuguese Primeira Liga side at Emirates for the returning leg of this Arsenal vs. FC Porto meeting, and here are some of the things you would love to know ahead of the game in London, England.
Arsenal vs. FC Porto: All Square in the All-Time Head-to-Head Record
The Arsenal vs. FC Porto meeting at Emirates will be the eighth meeting between the 13-time English champions and two-time European Cup / UEFA Champions League winners from Portugal. Both teams do not have any advantages over the other in terms of the all-time Arsenal vs. FC Porto record as both Arsenal and FC Porto have each notched three victories and drawing the remaining game. One positive remark Mikel Arteta’s men does have versus Sérgio Conceição’s FC Porto is the number of goals scored in these past seven matches, as the Gunners have bagged a total of 12 goals against FC Porto’s five, hinting a strong defence from the English side against their Portuguese opponents.
In the regard of recent runs, Arsenal, who beat Brentford 2-1 to regain the top spot of the EPL table, have won all previous eight league games and scored a whooping total of 33 goals while conceding only four; It is worth mentioning that the last defeat suffered by Arteta’s men in all competitions was indeed the first-leg 1-0 loss to FC Porto in the UCL Round of 16. FC Porto, however, also have been cruising in all competitions with excellent streaks. Apart from their 3-2 loss in the hands of F.C. Arouca, FC Porto had not been defeated in any of their recent 15 matches in all competitions, winning 11 times and drawing thrice during the near-invincible process.
If you are interested to rewind on the first leg of the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 in 2023/2024 between Arsenal vs. FC Porto at the latter’s home three weeks ago, then check out this article.
Head to head Arsenal vs Porto
History will repeat itself in the second leg pic.twitter.com/zcfH99Zqm8
— Egal (@EGTVEgal) February 22, 2024
Players to Watch in Arsenal vs. FC Porto: Saka and Evanilson
Let us now take a look at some of the players who could shine in this Arsenal vs. FC Porto match in the Champions League, and first up is the right winger for Gareth Southgate’s Three Lions Bukayo Saka. The England attacker is currently enjoying his best scoring season in his professional senior career, having netted 16 goals in addition to offering 15 assists in 36 games played across all competitions in the 2023/2024 Season. What is more important is that the 22-year-old has been the best player for Arsenal in the European club football competition this campaign with three goals and four assists in six appearances for the Gunners, that is, a goal / assist per game ratio of 1.17.
As for the case in the away side for the Arsenal vs. FC Porto UCL Last 16 second leg match, 24-year-old Brazilian Evanilson is the player to watch in protecting the Portuguese side’s slim advantage and leading them to the next round of the competition. Similar to his counterpart from England Saka, the Fortaleza-born Evanilson is also on his joint-best scoring season at 21 goals in 32 games for FC Porto, with four of these tallies coming from the UEFA Champions League.
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Injury Updates on Both Teams Ahead of the Arsenal vs. FC Porto Game
Unlike the high-scoring players such as Saka and Evanilson, there are several players who could potentially feature no part in the Arsenal vs. FC Porto meeting in the UCL tonight. For the Arsenal camp, Gunners who may not play in the continental matchup would be Jurriën Timber, Takehiro Tomiyasu and Gabriel Martinelli. With the 22-year-old Timber definitely out of contention to join the game, Arteta has refused to rule out the possibility of Tomiyasu’s and Martinelli’s participations, having mentioned the former from Japan has completed the first part of training while the Brazilian did not join in a session during an earlier pre-match conference.
FC Porto, who are currently the third-best team in the Portuguese top-flight football, will not have the services of two defenders in Iván Marcano and Zaidu, who are both sidelined due to their respective cruciate ligament tears.
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Where to Watch the UCL Clash Between Arsenal vs. FC Porto?
Arsenal vs. FC Porto is one of two scheduled second-leg Round of 16 matches in the top-tiered UEFA Champions League tonight, with the other being the encounter between two of Europe’s Top Five Leagues winners last season, Barcelona and SSC Napoli. The duo played out a 1-1 stalemate after 90 minutes plus added time in the first leg and they will have it all to play for in the returning round at Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys tonight.
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