Liverpool to Face FC Porto in the Champions League Quarter Finals

The Reds were drawn against Porto for the next round and the first match will be played at Anfield.

There were plenty of dangerous teams that Liverpool could have been paired with in the Champions League Quarter Final draw but the Reds appear to have sidestepped the competition’s favorites in the next round. Instead, Liverpool will face FC Porto in the quarter finals and the first leg of the tie will be an electric night at Anfield.

Then, if they can beat the Portuguese champions over two legs, the Reds know will be paired off with the winner of the quarter final between Barcelona and Manchester United. On the other side of the bracket, Juventus have drawn Ajax and Manchester City have drawn Tottenham

On the face of it, Liverpool should advance passed Porto without too much drama here. After all, last season also saw the two sides paired in the Champions League knockout rounds, with Liverpool sweeping Porto aside 5-0 on aggregate. Still, the Portuguese team will hold some hope of winning after the run they have been on to get to this stage of the competition.

Porto won Group D ahead of Schalke 04, Galatasaray, and Lokomotiv Moscow. Then they were drawn against AS Roma in the Round of 16. The first leg in Italy was a losing battle with Roma winning 2-1 but Porto won the second leg at the Estádio do Dragâo in dramatic fashion by coming from behind to send Roma out.

At this stage of the Champions League there are certainly no easy matches. But delaying any confrontations with Manchester City or Barcelona or Juventus is a solid outcome for Jürgen Klopp and his team.

Liverpool will be favorites to advance passed Porto and right there in the mix to get to the final again. Any of the teams left will have been anxious about drawing Liverpool in the quarter finals but Porto or Ajax will likely have been extra sweaty waiting for the second ball to be pulled after Liverpool’s name was announced.

After the performance against Bayern Munich this week, confidence will be high at Melwood going into the first match on Tuesday, April 9th. There will still be more to come if Liverpool beat Porto over two legs but on the evidence we’ve seen, these Liverpool players under this manager will feel they can achieve the big one.

Here is the road to Madrid... #UCLdraw pic.twitter.com/Rqpce9gEz3

— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) March 15, 2019

Source: liverpooloffside.sbnation.com