FC Porto vs Chelsea

September 28, 2015
By: Nemanja Lazarevic

Following the good performance in the 2-2 draw with Dynamo Kiev, FC Porto will attempt to pile more misery on Chelsea and improve their chances of reaching the knockout stages. The Blues may have hammered Maccabi Tel Aviv in the Champions League, but the poor Premier League form is a definite cause for concern.

Derby win over Benfica

FC Porto continue to make money while making sure their squad is good enough not only for Primeira Liga standards, but also for competing in Europe’s elite competition. And knowing how the Dragons go about their business, the fans were certainly not too concerned to see the likes of Jackson Martinez, Alex Sandro and Danilo Luiz da Silva leave this summer, especially as some very good footballers were brought to replace them. FC Porto in turn climbed to the top of the domestic championship, partly thanks to recent derby triumph over Benfica, while they missed the opportunity to defeat Moreirense at the weekend, with the hosts twice coming from behind to earn one point. The Dragons also enjoyed a good start to the Champions League campaign, playing out an entertaining 2-2 draw with Dynamo Kiev and they clearly head into the Chelsea game in excellent spirits. Porto have now scored a total of 14 goals in first seven matches of the season and they can be trusted to continue the good run on Tuesday night.

Important midfielder Yacine Brahimi is rated doubtful, but the good news is all other first team players are available for selection.

More problems for Mourinho

Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho just cannot seem to catch a break this season as his players are performing way below their potential. The team that claimed the Premier League title in style last term have won just two of seven league games and currently occupy 15th place in the overall standings, which is definitely not where they want to be. The Blues appeared to have returned to the right track having recorded successive wins over Maccabi Tel Aviv, Arsenal and Walsall, but they then slipped up against Newcastle United at the weekend and were fortunate to escape another defeat having come from two goals down to earn one point. There are no doubts that Jose Mourinho will demand a response from his players following yet another disappointing showing and we do expect to see the Blues adopt a positive approach when facing Porto at Estadio do Dragao, especially since a win on Tuesday could get them much closer to the next stage.

The visitors will be buoyed by the return of Diego Costa from domestic suspension, whereas Asmir Begovic will continue to deputize for Thibaut Courtois.

Verdict

FC Porto appear to be in good form at the moment and they have taken part in some quite entertaining matches of late. Meanwhile, Chelsea are desperate to record a morale-boosting victory, meaning we should see an enthralling encounter at Estadio do Dragao.

Top pick: Both teams to score   2.00 (1/1) @Coral

Alternative pick 1: Over 2.5 goals   2.30 (13/10) @Sportingbet

Alternative pick 2: Draw   3.30 (13/10) @bet365

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