Porto beats Chelsea 2-1 in Champions League
Porto’s Andre Andre celebrates after scoring the opening goal during the Champions League group G soccer match between FC Porto and Chelsea FC at the Dragao stadium in Porto, Portugal, Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2015. AP
PORTO, Portugal—Maicon scored the winner as FC Porto beat Chelsea 2-1 in the Champions League on Tuesday and heaped more misery on Jose Mourinho’s team.
Yacine Brahimi helped put Porto ahead in the 39th minute when he beat Branislav Ivanovic on the left, and goalkeeper Asmir Begovic could only push away his shot as far as Andre Andre, who volleyed into the net.
Willian equalized with a curling free-kick in first-half added time before Maicon put Porto back in front with a glancing header at the front post in the 52nd.
It was a dismal return to his former club for Mourinho, whose career took off when he coached Porto to the Champions League title in 2004.
Porto is “probably the most difficult opponent we have in the group phase,” Mourinho said. “They are a real opponent for the first position in the group.”
The result put Porto level with Group G leader Dynamo Kiev on four points after the Ukrainian side beat Maccabi Tel-Aviv 2-0 on Tuesday. Chelsea has three points and Maccabi Tel Aviv none.
Chelsea lies 14th in the Premier League after an unhappy start to the season, and its loss at the Stadium of the Dragon compounded its problems.
Chelsea made the better start, though. Twice in the first 15 minutes, goalkeeper Iker Casillas — making a record 152nd appearance in the competition after a long career at Real Madrid — denied Chelsea. He flung himself to his right to block a Cesc Fabregas effort just inside the Porto area in the 6th and stuck out his foot to deny Pedro Rodriguez, who broke down the middle.
Porto kept getting within shooting range, but its attacks never amounted to anything as Chelsea’s defensive lines closed up.
Diego Costa, suspended in the Premier League but available for European competition, kept Porto’s central defenders busy but Chelsea failed to exploit his efforts. After Porto went 2-1 up, Costa hit the woodwork with a dipping shot from the left of the area that flew beyond Casillas’s reach.
Mourinho brought on Eden Hazard, usually a starter, as a substitute in the 62nd but he had little impact and Porto could have had another goal 10 minutes from the end when Danilo headed against the post.
