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Champions League | Group Stage
Sep 27, 2016 at 7.45pm UK
 
P

1-0

Slimani (25')
FT(HT: 1-0)

Live Commentary: Leicester City 1-0 Porto - as it happened

:Headline: Live Commentary: Leicester City 1-0 Porto - as it happened: ID:282127: from db_amp
Relive Leicester's 1-0 victory over Porto as Islam Slimani's goal hands the Foxes victory in their first ever home Champions League match.

Leicester City marked their first ever Champions League home game with a 1-0 victory over Porto at the King Power Stadium this evening.

Islam Slimani - a scourge of Porto during his time with Sporting Lisbon - scored the only goal of the game after 25 minutes when he glanced Riyad Mahrez's cross past Iker Casillas.

Porto were inches away from rescuing a point late on when Jesus Corona's powerful volley deflected onto the post, but Leicester ultimately held out to make it two wins from two in Group G.

Find out how all of the action unfolded courtesy of Sports Mole's live minute-by-minute coverage below.

Good evening! Thank you very much for joining Sports Mole on a memorable night for Leicester City as they welcome Champions League football to the King Power Stadium for the first time ever. Portuguese giants Porto are the visitors this evening as Leicester look to make it two wins from two in Europe's elite club competition to continue their fairytale run. Let's start with a look at the team news..
LEICESTER STARTING XI: Schmeichel; Hernández, Huth, Morgan, Fuchs; Mahrez, Drinkwater, Amartey, Albrighton; Slimani, Vardy
LEICESTER SUBS: Zieler, Musa, King, Schlupp, Simpson, Okazaki, Gray
PORTO STARTING XI: Casillas; Layun, Felipe, Marcano, Telles; Danilo, Andre; Torres, Otavio, Adrian; Silva
What can we make of those two teams, then? Well, the vast majority of the pre-match talk has surrounded Leicester's big-money summer signing Islam Slimani due to his sensational record against Porto during his time with Sporting Lisbon. The Algerian, as expected, leads the line alongside Jamie Vardy once again this evening looking to add to the five goals he has already scored against Porto this year. He scored braces in two league meetings with Porto before adding another in his last game for the club.
It is an unchanged midfield and attack for Leicester despite their convincing defeat at the hands of Manchester United at the weekend, which means that Jamie Vardy once again starts up front with Slimani. The England international should be nice and fresh for this match having been taken off at half time of the defeat at Old Trafford when Leicester were already four goals down.
Riyad Mahrez was also hauled off at the interval in that match, and the Algerian will be hoping that both his individual performance and the team display is more akin to their Champions League debut against Club Brugge than the weekend defeat to Manchester United. Mahrez shone in Belgium earlier this month and came away with two goals, including one from the penalty spot, as the Foxes marked their first ever appearance in the competition with a memorable victory.
There is one change in defence for Leicester this evening as Hernandez comes in in place of Simpson, who drops to the bench. It is a back four that was rarely tampered with last season, but by Ranieri's own admission the team have been shipping far too many goals so far this season and the veteran Italian has opted to switch things up tonight. Morgan and Huth both retain their places at the heart of the defence, though, while Fuchs continues on the left.
There is also a change in goal for the Foxes, and it is a welcome return to the starting XI for Kasper Schmeichel. The shot-stopper was an ever-present during Leicester's remarkable title success last season but picked up an injury during the match against Club Brugge earlier this month and has been sidelined since. He missed the first two games with concussion before being ruled out of the weekend defeat to Manchester United with a groin injury, but he has recovered in time to start tonight.
As for Porto, they are able to name an unchanged side to the one that beat Boavista on Friday, which includes Andre Silva leading the line. He is likely to be the biggest threat for Leicester to worry about this evening having scored twice at the weekend, taking his tally for the season to four now. He is expected to play alone up front again, with support from the trio of Torres, Otavio and Adrian behind him.
Miguel Layun has experience of English football from his time with Watford recently, while many of tonight's team travelled to Stamford Bridge to take on Chelsea last season. Ivan Marcano was certainly involved in that one, but he won't have fond memories of these shores having scored an own goal as Porto fell to a 2-0 defeat in the group stages.
Also in defence is Alex Telles, who scored his first goal for the club at the weekend against Boavista, while Danilo and Andre Andre will provide protection for that back four. Behind them is Iker Casillas, who extends his reign as the most experienced player in Champions League history this evening. Even with all that experience, though, he is unlikely to have seen anything quite like Leicester's rise to this level!
It is a rise that has been very well documented already, but still words fail to do justice as to quite how remarkable it is to see Leicester on this stage. Tonight marks their first ever home Champions League match, and also their first ever home European game at this stadium since the move from Filbert Street in 2002. The last time they saw European football come to these parts was in 2000, when they drew 1-1 with Crvena Zvezda in the UEFA Cup.
Overall at Filbert Street, Leicester had a European record of one win, two draws and one defeat from four games, but they would have gained enormous confidence from their Champions League debut earlier this month. There was never any doubt that they deserve their place amongst Europe's elite following the heroics of last season, but a 3-0 win away to Club Brugge will raise hopes that they can compete at this level too. Porto represent a step up in class from the Belgians, but Leicester will not feat anything going into tonight's match.
Having said that, the Foxes are coming into this one on the back of two consecutive defeats that have seen them concede eight goals in the process. They had registered back-to-back 3-0 wins before their EFL Cup meeting with Chelsea, but they blew a two-goal lead to eventually lose 4-2 after extra time, before finding themselves four down by half time against Manchester United at the weekend. It is worth noting that Leicester also went into the Club Brugge match off the back of a 4-1 loss to Liverpool, but it certainly isn't ideal preparation for this game.
Leicester's league form at the start of the current campaign is not the greatest surprise, but Ranieri will still be disappointed with only having amassed seven points from their opening six games. A sign of just how impressive they were last season is that they have already lost as many games this term as they did throughout the entire 2015-16 campaign (three). Ranieri made no secret of how tough he thought it would be to challenge for the league again this time around, and they are finding it just as difficult as he expected so far.
The biggest difference, particularly compared to the second half of last season, is the number of goals Leicester are conceding. They have already shipped 17 this term, include four in a match on three separate occasions. At the other end of the field they have only failed to score in one of their nine outings so far this term, but while they were outscoring teams last season, they have been unable to do that against the bigger sides this time around.
One plus going into this match is that their home record remains strong, with seven points taken from a possible nine in front of their own fans in the Premier League this season - Arsenal being the only visiting team to avoid defeat. Indeed, it is now a full year since they last tasted a home Premier League defeat, while in all competitions they have been beaten just twice in their last 20 matches at the King Power Stadium. One of those did come in their most recent outing here, though, with Chelsea coming from behind to win after extra time in the EFL Cup.
This is bound to be an extra special occasion as Leicester herald the arrival of the Champions League, though, which is something that seemed almost impossible this time last year. Their victory over Brugge earlier this month saw them become only the third English team to win on their Champions League debut, after Manchester United and Newcastle United, while the 3-0 scoreline means that only AC Milan in 1992 and Atletico Madrid in 1996 have won by a bigger margin in their first match in the competition. Can they repeat the feat this evening?
Porto are the team standing in the way of making it six points from a possible six in Europe, and if you solely look at the Champions League pedigree between the two teams then the visitors are the outstanding favourites to come away with the win. The Portuguese outfit may have failed to make it out of the group stages last season, but they reached the quarter-finals the year before and are regulars at this level. They also have the small matter of two European titles to their name having lifted the trophy in 1987 and 2004.
Unlike Leicester, Nuno's side did need to qualify for this season's competition, though, and their place was by no means secured when they were drawn against Roma in the playoff. As it turned out, though, there was little for anybody to worry about as Porto cruised through comfortably in the end, winning 4-1 on aggregate thanks largely to a 3-0 win in the away second leg. Roma certainly did not help themselves with three red cards over the two legs, but Porto still managed to carry out the job in a professional manner to book their place in the group stages once again.
Porto also benefitted from a red card for their opponents on matchday one of the group stages, but this time they were unable to take full advantage. Indeed, it was a rather tame start to their group stage campaign as they were held to a 1-1 draw by Danish side Copenhagen at the Estadio do Dragao. Copenhagen were forced to play the majority of the second half with 10 men, but Cornelius's 53rd-minute strike was enough to earn a point for the visitors.
Nuno has promised that his team have improved since that disappointing start, but they also find themselves off the pace domestically too. With six games of the campaign gone, Porto already trail Benfica by three points and are also two behind Sporting Lisbon. That is largely down to a defeat at the hands of Sporting at the end of August - Porto's only loss in nine matches so far this season. They are unbeaten in four games since then, although tonight they are looking for back-to-back wins for only the second time this term.
In the Champions League, they have won five of their last 10 away games, including qualifiers, with three draws and just two defeats in that time, although it is a different story when it comes to visits to England. Porto have failed to win any of their previous 16 away European games against English opposition, with 14 of those ending in defeats for the Portuguese outfit. That includes an ongoing run of four losses in a row without even scoring, the most recent of which came in a 2-0 defeat at the hands of Chelsea last season.
In their last 10 Champions League matches against English opposition, Porto have either scored twice (four times) or not at all (six times), so if they are able to breach Leicester's defences this evening then they may be expecting another to follow. Leicester certainly have plenty of attacking prowess as their disposal, but it would be a big ask for them to score three in a second consecutive Champions League game, so another two-goal haul for Porto could be enough to clinch at least a point.
Porto are, however, winless in their last three matches in the Champions League proper, losing their final two group games of last season before that draw against Copenhagen on matchday one this time around. Prior to that, they had lost just one of their previous 14 Champions League outings - including nine wins - so they will be desperate to get back to those winning ways here tonight.
PREDICTION: We're 10 minutes from kickoff here at the King Power Stadium, which means that it is time for a prediction! This really is a tough one to call as it is difficult to know what to expect from Leicester especially. It is sure to be an emotionally-charged occasion for the hosts, and that brought the best out of them against Club Brugge. They will be hoping that is the case again tonight, and I am going to back them to pull of something of a surprise 2-1 win.
Unsurprisingly, this is the first ever competitive meeting between these two sides, with the main link between the two clubs at the moment being Slimani's goalscoring record against Porto. The Algerian boasted the nickname 'The Dragon Slayer' during his time with Porto due to his habit of scoring against Porto, so both he and Claudio Ranieri will be hoping that reputation carries over to his new club.
Current Porto boss Nuno has actually come up against Ranieri in a European final before, and once again Porto were involved. It came in the 2004 European Super Cup when Ranieri was in charge of Valencia, having taken over from Rafael Benitez. Valencia went on to win that match against then-European champions Porto, who has Nuno in their ranks as a reserve goalkeeper.
A special mention before kickoff for Iker Casillas, who will make his 158th Champions League appearance tonight. A victory for Porto would also see him move out on his own for wins in the competition, with the Spaniard currently level on 91 with compatriot Xavi.
Right, the players are out and we're just about ready to go here! As expected, there is a great atmosphere inside the stadium as the crowd inside the King Power get ready to witness a small slice of history.
KICKOFF: Here we go then! Porto get us underway for the first ever Champions League match at the King Power Stadium!
CHANCE! Half a chance early on for Porto, and it comes out of nothing really. Otavio sends a ball forward for Silva, and Schmeichel comes charging off his line. He is nowhere near beating the striker to the ball, though, and he is fortunate to see the ball drop narrowly wide of the empty goal from the resulting shot.
There really is an electric atmosphere in the stadium for this one. Leicester fans are undoubtedly delighted just to be seeing these types of nights at the King Power Stadium, but that is not to say that they would be content with whatever happens here. They want a win.
Vardy almost gets his first chance in behind as Slimani flicks a header on for his strike partner. Vardy collects inside the area, but leaves the ball behind and Porto are able to clear the danger.
Schmeichel needs to be alert here as a cross threatens to fly in to his top corner, but he watches it all the way and plucks it out of the air.
CLOSE! The crowd think Leicester have the opener in strange circumstances as Fuchs's long throw causes all manner of problems. Huth is in there, but it is a Porto player who nods it narrowly behind for a corner. Casillas came for it, but got nowhere near.
Almost a chance for Porto at the other end as Layun comes forward down the right flank and sends a teasing low ball into the middle. Silva goes for it, but can't get enough on the ball to turn it goalwards.
This match has started at a good tempo, with both teams looking to get the ball forward quickly on the break. We could be in for an entertaining contest tonight!
CHANCE! The scourge of Porto, Islam Slimani, gets his first sight of goal tonight as he gets beyond the defenders to latch on to Albrighton's floated free kick. He glances a header goalwards, but it lacks power and Casillas makes a fairly routine stop.
Another quick attack from Leicester ends with Vardy's low ball into the box being cut out by Porto's defence. The hosts will be pretty happy with how they have started this match - they are more than holding their own right now.
So far so good for Leicester, who have been the better team in this opening 20 minutes or so. If they can grab a goal during this period then it will be almost a perfect start for the English champions.
Porto win a free kick in a decent crossing position, but the delivery is poor. Leicester have struggled defensively from set pieces so far this season, so that will be a big disappointment for the visitors.
YELLOW CARD! Felipe is the first name in the book tonight, and it is a really good spot from referee Cuneyt Cakir. The Porto defender dragged Vardy to ground off the ball and was correctly punished for the cynical foul.
YELLOW CARD! Another yellow card quickly follows for Otavio, this time for handball, although this one is very harsh. Free kick to Leicester in a very good position...
YELLOW CARD! Before the free kick can be taken, Vardy joins the Porto pair in the book for pushing Otavio out of the wall.
Mahrez does eventually go for goal from the free kick, but it hits the wall and Casillas mops up the loose ball comfortably.
GOAL! Leicester 1-0 Porto (Islam Slimani)
The man just cannot stop scoring against Porto! Slimani makes it six against the Portuguese giants this year with the first ever Champions League goal at the King Power Stadium! Albrighton spread a fine crossfield ball over to Mahrez, who took the ball down, created space and curled a cross into the box. It goes over the head of an unmarked Vardy, but Slimani gets in front of his man to nod it home.
Porto fans must have rejoiced when Slimani left Sporting during the summer, but it didn't take him long to haunt them once again. The Algerian now has six goals in just four appearances against Porto in 2016.
...and here is that Slimani opener.


Leicester deserve their lead so far tonight. They have looked dangerous almost every time they have come forward so far, with the pace of Vardy, Mahrez et al causing Porto all sorts of problems.
YELLOW CARD! Another break sees Vardy latch on to a ball over the top, only for his low cross into the box to be too far in front of Mahrez. Slimani closes down the defender who picks up the loose ball, but fouls him while pressing and picks up a yellow card for his troubles.
Leicester have enjoyed 55% of the ball so far in this match, but is anything Porto are finding it even more difficult when they have possession. Leicester are swarming all over them and their energy is causing plenty of problems. We are seeing the Leicester of last season again tonight.
CLOSE! Porto have a free kick in a good position and Layun sends a very good effort up and over the wall. Schmeichel is worried, but the ball ripples the side-netting on its way behind.
Porto come down the left flank this time and Adrian Lopez gets in front of his man to latch on to a cross into the box, but he can;t keep his header down as it flies comfortably over the crossbar.
Leicester have so far done a very good job of preventing Porto from getting any sort of momentum going in this match. There have been a number of free kicks in the game, which has disrupted the rhythm somewhat, and that has played into the hands of the hosts so far.
Another free kick to Porto as Layun goes down theatrically after a challenge from Slimani. He initially looks seriously hurt, but after he sees that Slimani will not be shown a second yellow, he bounces back to his feet. Dreadful dive from the defender.
Questions have been asked of Casillas under the high ball, and Leicester are looking to exploit that. Mahrez drops one right on the keeper here and Huth charges into him, but to be fair the former Real Madrid keeper gets a hand to it before being awarded the free kick.
Another quick break from Leicester as Drinkwater threads a pass through for Vardy. The striker flicks it back to Mahrez, who tries a clever no-look reverse pass back to Vardy, but for once they are not on the same page and the attack breaks down.
HALF TIME: Leicester City 1-0 Porto
The referee brings an end to the first half here at the King Power Stadium, and it is so far so good for Leicester as they remain on course to make it two wins from two in the Champions League. They have been the better team so far tonight, but will want that second goal to give themselves a cushion against the experienced European campaigners that are Porto.
The only goal of the contest so far came from Slimani, perhaps predictably considering he had already scored five times against Porto this year. Albrighton pinged a pass over to Mahrez, who in turn swung a fine cross into the middle. It flew over the head of an unmarked Vardy, but Slimani beat his man to the ball at the back post to nod it home.
Slimani had already come close once before his opening goal, although this time Casillas made a relatively comfortable stop to deny the Algerian. Again it came from a header as he escaped his marker to get on the end of Albrighton's deep free kick, but this time it lacked the power required to truly test the Porto keeper.
Casillas had earlier been fortunate to see a long Fuchs throw nodded narrowly wide by his own defender after getting nowhere near the ball having come off his line, while very early in the match Schmeichel also found himself stranded. The Leicester keeper raced out of his area inside three minutes but was comfortably beaten to the ball, only for Andre Silva to fire his potshot narrowly wide of the target.
The only other time the visitors have really threatened Leicester's goal came from a free kick 10 minutes before the interval when Layun curled an effort over the wall and towards the bottom corner. Schmeichel was struggling to get there, but he watched on as the ball rippled the side-netting on its way behind.
KICKOFF: Leicester get us back underway for the second half at the King Power Stadium, and they are just 45 minutes away from moving on to six points from a possible six in their maiden Champions League campaign.
Casillas gets away with one here! He tries to play out from the back and sells Danilo short with his pass, but the midfielder just about gets his toe to the ball before Vardy.
YELLOW CARD! Danilo becomes the latest player in the book for a high foot on Slimani. It was a genuine attempt for the ball, but he did catch Slimani.
Ranieri asked some pretty public questions of his defence in the wake of their 4-1 defeat to Manchester United last time out, but so far they have responded well. Schmeichel has been well protected tonight.
Without being a particularly dirty game, there have been quite a few fouls and yellow cards in this match so far, and it has made for something of a stop-start encounter.
YELLOW CARD! Speaking of which, Huth is the latest name in the book for a foul off the ball. Porto have a free kick in a good position here...
Telles goes for goal, but he fires it a long way over the crossbar. He got that all wrong.
UPDATE: There has been a goal in the other Group G encounter taking place this evening and it is Copenhagen who have taken the lead against Club Brugge courtesy of a Stefano Denswil strike.
SAVE! A free-flowing move from Leicester as they come flooding forward with Vardy, Mahrez and Slimani all involved. The ball is eventually teed up for Mahrez, whose low strike is tipped behind by Casillas.
Leicester are piling the pressure on right now, but Porto are just about holding firm! Mahrez and Drinkwater both have chances to shoot in quick succession, but Porto's defenders throw themselves in the way of both shots bravely.
Leicester again looks to break quickly, but this time Porto just about deal with the danger. They seem to have been a little caught out tonight in the same way many Premier League teams were caught out last season.
PORTO SUBS: Double change for the visitors here as Hector Herrera and Diego Jota come on in place of Andre and Adrian.
Half a chance for Porto here as Felipe rises highest to meet a corner, but he cannot steer his header anywhere near the target and Schmeichel watches it sail high and wide.
UPDATE: Copenhagen look to be on course for victory in the other Group G match this evening, doubling their advantage over Club Brugge through Thomas Delaney. That would leave Leicester top on six points, Copenhagen on four and Porto on one.
Mahrez and Slimani look to link up once again, this time with the former sending a hanging ball to the far post. It is just too long for Slimani, though, who can't keep the ball alive despite his best efforts.
UPDATE: Copenhagen have a third goal against Club Brugge, and they have also missed a penalty. It seems as though the Belgians could be the whipping boys of this group.
Less than 20 minutes remain in this one now, and still Porto haven't really looked like breaching this Leicester defence. Clear chances have been few and far between in this second half, but that will suit Leicester perfectly.
SAVE! Better from Porto as they come forward with a good move that sees Silva lay the ball off for Jota. The sub cuts inside from the left flank, but then tries to beat Schmeichel from a very difficult angle and it is all very straightforward for the keeper.
Leicester can't resist a quick counter-attack, but that could go one of two ways in the closing stages of this match. They are refusing to sit back and close out the game, keeping it fairly open, which could give Porto the chance they need to get back into this match.
SAVE! Schmeichel is called into another piece of action here, this time to turn Herrera's 30-yard volley around the post.
Porto's pressure has just been beginning to grow in the last five minutes or so as Leicester continue to get penned back in their own half. They are always dangerous on the counter, but right now it is Porto who are on top.
PORTO SUB: The visitors make their third and final change of the match as Jesus Corona replaces Torres.
Porto's changes seem to have worked here, and in the last 15 minutes they have enjoyed 63% of the possession. They are on top right now for sure, but Leicester have just 10 minutes to hold out now.
CHANCE! Chance for Porto late on here as the ball is clipped into the box for Silva. He has escaped his marker and gets to the ball, but he can't bring it down or make anything of a very good position.
LEICESTER SUB: As things stand he is the match-winner, but Slimani will not see out the game as he makes way to a rapturous reception. Andy King comes on in his place.
OFF THE POST! Porto are inches away from levelling things up! A ball into the box is half cleared by Huth just in front of Schmeichel, taking both players out of the game. The loose ball drops to Corona, who blasts a brilliant first-time volley towards goal, but it takes a deflection off Albrighton and crashes against the post.
Almost a chance at the other end this time as Albrighton capitalises on a defensive slip to find Vardy, who has the ball just stolen from his toe when looking to pull the trigger. Mahrez is there on the loose ball, but blazes his effort well off target.
This is shaping up to be a very nervy end to the game for Leicester! Porto have vastly improved in the last 15 minutes or so and they are pushing hard for that equaliser.
LEICESTER SUB: Another change from the hosts as Mahrez departs to be replaced by Demarai Gray.
Almost a late chance for Porto here as Otavio refuses to give up on a cross to the back post. He gets his head to it, but can only knock it back into the arms of Schmeichel.
Leicester have four minutes of added time to hold out for here!
UPDATE: Copenhagen have wrapped things up with a fourth goal against Club Brugge in Denmark.
LEICESTER SUB: A third and final change to wind down the clock from the hosts as Ahmed Musa replaces Vardy.
FULL TIME: Leicester City 1-0 Porto
It is more glory for Leicester in Europe as they make it two wins from two in the Champions League! Porto were expected to provide the biggest test the Foxes in the group stages, but in the end it is a deserved win for the English champions. Islam Slimani got the only goal of the game in the first half before Leicester withstood some late pressure, which included Porto hitting the post, to emerge victorious from their first ever Champions League home game. History for the hosts!
That is all we have time for this evening! Thank you very much for joining Sports Mole for tonight's match as Leicester marked their home Champions League bow with a memorable 1-0 win over Porto, making it maximum points from their first two games in the competition. I will leave you with our match report, and be sure to stick around for reaction. We have more Champions League action for you tomorrow, with the likes of Man City and Arsenal on show, so be sure to check back in for that too! From me, though, it is goodbye for now!

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