In a game lacking in any real quality, Porto came from behind to defeat Lazio 2-1 in the first leg of their Europa League play-off.
Two goals from Toni Martinez cancelled out a Mattia Zaccagni near-post flick to put the Portuguese side in the driving seat at the Estadio do Dragao.
Sergio Conceicao masterminded a narrow victory for his side against a Maurizio Sarri team who were oddly cautious in their approach play; standing off out of possession and hesitant in it as their experienced heads were beaten by the boys in blue and white.
The game itself ebbed and flowed, but had a scrappy, nervy nature to it. Neither side could really keep hold of the ball as the hosts sought to control the game, with the visitors looking to hit them on the counter, and the positive mentality of Conceicao’s side was enough to see them over the line.
It wasn’t before poor defending at a Luis Alberto corner routine allowed Zaccagni to sneak in front of Diogo Costa to prod home, but his strike was nullified by the brace of Martinez, who nodded his side level on 37 minutes before putting them ahead early in the second half with a swept finish into the far corner after a Joao Mario cross.
Martinez forced a good save from Thomas Strakosha as the home side seized on a Luiz Felipe mistake, but the Albanian goalkeeper was up to the task and denied the Spaniard his hat-trick.
It was a disappointing result for a Lazio side missing talismanic striker Ciro Immobile, but he should be back for the second leg and Porto’s slender one-goal lead could well prove fragile when they visit Rome.
TALKING POINT – A DULL AFFAIR, PROFESSIONAL PERFORMANCE
Porto won’t care how they’ve won this game, just that they have.
They made the most of their home advantage; taking the game to their cautious opposition who really should have tried to step on the gas and kill the game off when Zaccagni put them ahead against the run of play.
A solid defensive display was aided in part by Ciro Immobile’s absence, but Pepe and Chancel Mbemba remained unfazed at the fluidity of the visiting front three as Zaccagni grew into the game once more towards the end. Nonetheless, he couldn’t strike again to haul his side level.
A strong win for Conceicao, as he sees his side seize the initiative going into the all-important return leg in the Eternal City.
PLAYER RATINGS
Porto: Costa 6, Mario 7, Mbemba 7, Pepe 6, Sanusi 6, Otavio 6, Uribe 6, Grujic 6, Vieira 6, Aquino 6, Martinez 8, Galeno 6, Vitinha 6, Evanlison 6, Eustaquio 6, Costa 6.
Lazio: Strakosha 6, Marusic 6, Felipe 6, Patric 6, Radu 6, M-Savic 7, Lucas 6, Alberto 6, Anderson 5, Pedro 6, Zaccagni 7, Cataldi 6, Hysaj 6, Basic 6, Cabral 6, Moro 6.
MAN OF THE MATCH – TONI MARTINEZ, PORTO
A weird choice, this.
It would seem natural to select the match-winner and two-goal hero as the man of the match but, other than his brace, the Spaniard didn’t really impress all that much.
His hold-up play was average to say the least, but his movement in the box and predatory instincts meant that he latched onto two sumptuous Mario crosses, giving Strakosha no chance and, more importantly, giving Porto the edge in this tie.
KEY MOMENTS
23′: GOALLLL!!! Mbemba deals with Marusic’s cross from the right, and Luis Alberto is over the set piece. He takes it short, and he flashes one into the near post… Zaccagni!!! It’s in! Flicked in with real panache! They lead, against the run of play!
32′: GREAT SAVE! A decent counter from Lazio ends in a Milinkovic-Savic effort with his left, but Costa makes himself big and denies him making it two!
37′: GOALLL!!! What a header! An equaliser for Porto, and it’s Toni Martinez! Swung in from the right by Vieira, and nodded into the far corner by the Spaniard.
49′: GOALLLL!!!! They’ve turned it around, and it’s Martinez who doubles his and Porto’s money! Two on the night for the Spaniard as he sweeps home after a lovely Mario cross from the right.
52′: GOOD SAVE! Martinez forces Strakosha into action at the near post as Porto seize on a Felipe mistake, and they’ve got a corner. It’s gone short but the delivery is cleared, and Lazio look to counter through Alberto, but they’ve wasted it and Porto rebuild.
