Goalkeeper Aargau annoys Arsenal: Porto’s Diogo Costa hardly allows any goals

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In the 94th minute, all the dams broke in the Estadio de Dragao, the Dragon Stadium in Porto. Winger Galeno (26) forces one last attack and tries a shot from about 20 meters – and scores. The Portuguese celebrate and beat Arsenal 1-0 late on. Diogo Costa (24), the Porto goalkeeper born in Rothrist AG, keeps his box tight against the big boys from London.

Porto wins a match with very little chance. The hosts managed just two shots on the Gunners’ goal, the Londoners none at all. According to statistics provider Opta, Arsenal went without a goal for only the second time since data collection in the Champions League (since 2003) – the last time was against Barcelona in March 2011. “We lacked danger. “We lacked aggressiveness, especially with the ball in the final third,” analyzes Mikel Arteta (41).

Porto hardly allows any goals

However, cracking Porto’s defense is not a given. Across all competitions, Portugal’s number two team only concedes 0.85 goals per match, while in the league it is only 0.73. Veteran Pepe (turns 41 on Monday) – the oldest player to have played a knockout match in the Champions League since Wednesday – is in charge of the defense. Goalkeeper Diogo Costa has only been beaten 26 times in a total of 31 games this season.

The goalkeeper predicted before the match that Arsenal were “a very attacking team with a few weaknesses”. He wouldn’t reveal what they were. After the match, he told pay-TV channel Dazn that they had “studied English very carefully.” For him, the team was crucial for the victory: “The collective was the key today. The team fought until the end.”

‘Arsenal was a shadow of its former self’

Arteta, on the other hand, has difficulty with his own attacking performance: “We need more aggressiveness and have to play more forward.” In the second half they created more attacking situations, but were unable to capitalize on them. ‘We will learn from it. Because in the Champions League you are punished.”

TV pundit and ex-ManUtd defender Rio Ferdinand agrees: “You need your top level here. You just have to create chances and keep the goalkeeper busy.” The Gunners didn’t do that, so the 45-year-old’s conclusion is: “They were a shadow of their former selves.” In the last Premier League games against West Ham (6-0) and Burnley (5-0), those attacking efforts would have been enough, but “that’s Porto. This is the Champions League.”

Arsenal is back in the knockout phase of the premier class for the first time since 2017. The last win came in the second leg against Monaco in 2015, but that was not enough to progress. A 2-0 win like back then would be enough this time in the second leg at the Emirates Stadium (March 12).

Source : Blick