Internazionale v Porto Live Commentary & Result, 22/02/2023, UEFA Champions League

That's all for today, goodbye.

Next up, Inter travel to Bologna in Serie A with Porto hosting Gil Vicente in the Primeira Liga.

Inter take a 1-0 lead over Porto into the second leg thanks to a goal from substitute Lukaku. The former Manchester United man made a difference after coming on and was a presence in the attack. First looking to assist Barella who missed the target, the forward then tried to slide a cross into the path of Martinez, with the Argentine narrowly missing the ball. Lukaku then scored the winner, hitting the post with a header before powering in the rebound. This came after Porto received a red card. Booked in the first half, Otavio was given his marching orders after a late tackle on Calhanoglu. Before going down to 10 men, Porto could have had the lead after a goalmouth scramble. Sanusi was denied by Skriniar and Onana before Taremi’s attempt was pushed away by the goalkeeper.

90' + 4' FULL-TIME: INTER 1-0 PORTO

Gonçalo Borges

João Mário

90' + 2' Substitution for Porto to wind down the clock at the end of the game. Borges replaces Joao Mario.

90' + 2' On the right flank, Grujic tries to go past Gosens before deciding to put a cross into the box. Blocked by the defender, it comes back off Grujic and out for a goal-kick.

90' There will be four minutes of additional time. Inter will fancy another goal.

88' Another chance for Lukaku. Calhanoglu's corner from the left is flicked into the path of the striker by Acerbi. On the turn, his shot from a tight angle is pushed away by Costa.

R. Lukaku

Goal

86' GOALLLL! LUKAKU BREAKS THE DEADLOCK! 1-0 INTER! Lukaku has been superb since coming on and has now scored. Getting on the end of a cross from Barella, his header comes off the post. Reacting quickly to the rebound, the substitute crashes the following attempt past Costa.

85' Just outside the box, Barella drives a shot just wide of the post. Porto have stopped committing men forward and are focused on keeping a clean sheet.

Wendell

M. Taremi

83' Porto are making a tactical change. They have added an extra defender with left-back Wendell replacing Taremi.

D. Dumfries

M. Škriniar

81' Another change for Inter. Dumfries comes on to add energy down the right wing with Skriniar coming off. Darmian moves back to centre-back.

80' Calhanoglu crashes a free-kick against the wall. Inter will dominate the ball for the final minutes of the game with Porto now hanging on.

78' RED CARD FOR OTAVIO! Otavio receives a second yellow card after a late tackle on Calhanoglu on the edge of Porto's box. The away side will have to play 12 minutes with 10 men.

77' Calhanoglu plays a short corner to Brozovic. With nobody picking up the Croatian, he enters the box before having a shot blocked.

75' Otavio picks up the ball in Inter's defensive third, driving towards the box. On the edge, Brozovic makes a sliding challenge to take it away from the Porto man.

73' Immediately after coming on, Brozovic is involved in an Inter chance. He plays the ball inside to Calhanoglu who plays it down the right side of the box to Lukaku. Instead of shooting, the striker is unselfish, driving the ball across the box looking for Martinez. He slides looking to get onto the end of it but fails to do so.

M. Brozović

H. Mkhitaryan

72' A third change for Inter. Mkhitaryan is given a rest and is replaced by Brozovic who started the previous game.

70' A poor foul to give away by Taremi. Near the Inter box, Mkhitaryan gives away possession with Porto committing men forward. With the home side struggling to clear it away, the ball goes up in the air with Taremi crashing into Mkhitaryan.

69' CHANCE! Lukaku has been brought on to be a target man and is using his body well. The striker chests a long ball back to Barella who lashes a shot over the bar. His presence in the attack has given Inter a different outlet.

67' This is Inter manager Simone Inzaghi’s fifth game in the knockout stages of the Champions League, while he has suffered defeats in three of the previous four (W1). The exception among those four games was a 1-0 win at Anfield versus Liverpool last season, however, his side were still eliminated 2-1 on aggregate in the last 16.

65' Poor from Mkhitaryan. He tries to play a throughball towards Martinez but gets it all wrong and Porto have it back. He could have played it to Barella who was free on the right.

Pepê Aquino

Yellow Card

63' Pepe Aquino is given a yellow card after crashing into Calhanoglu. The referee tries to let the game continue but brings it back for an Inter free-kick.

61' Martínez plays the ball out to Bastoni who goes down the left flank. The defender puts a low cross into the box, but Pepe gets across to make an interception.

59' Taremi has been directly involved in seven goals in five games for Porto in the Champions League this term (five goals, two assists) – the most by a player in a single campaign for the club since Moussa Marega in 2018-19 (eight – six goals and two assists).

R. Gosens

F. Dimarco

58' A second substitution for Inter. Dimarco, who has put in some dangerous crosses, comes off for Gosens.

R. Lukaku

E. Džeko

58' Inzaghi has seen enough and is making his first change of the game. It comes in the attack with Lukaku coming on for Dzeko.

57' BRILLIANT FROM ONANA! Sanusi's first shot is blocked by Skriniar who slides in before the goalkeeper saves the rebound. It goes out to Taremi in the middle of the box, who has his attempt beaten away by Onana before the flag goes up.

55' Brilliant counter from Porto. Pepe Aquino threads it to Taremi who is one-on-one with Onana. Under pressure, his attempt is tame with the goalkeeper pushing his attempt wide.

54' Martinez tries to flick Dimarco's cross towards an Inter team-mate but it is blocked by a Porto defender.

53' Smart run from Barella. With Skriniar playing the ball long, he rushes down the right side of the box before crashing a shot across the goal. It bounces just wide.

Evanilson

Galeno

51' Porto make their first substitution with Galeno down injured. Evanilson comes on in his place and goes out to the right wing.

48' Porto have stopped the opposition from scoring a first-half goal in six of their seven games, only Bayern Munich (seven) have done this more often in the Champions League this season.

47' Pepe Aquino chips the ball across the box, but Galeno cannot get a good connection on it. The ball hits the top of the head of the winger before going out to the byline.

46' Dimarco switches the ball from left to right with Darmian free. He then plays a quick one-two with Barella before crossing it into the hands of Costa.

46' Inter get the game back under way with the score level. No changes have been made.

Porto have struggled to stop Inter from breaking forwards. Darmian and Dimarco have sat high up the pitch and are always ready to receive the ball. Aquino and Galeno must get back and help their full-backs, with the Inter pair accomplished crossers. However, they kept Martinez and Dzeko quiet when crosses entered the box. Inter are struggling to break Porto down in the middle, so they must get Calhanoglu on the ball more often. Mkhitaryan has been quiet, so must get involved more after the break.

Inter have had the better chances in the first 45 minutes but the game is goalless at half-time. In-form striker Martinez had their first opportunity but completely missed the target with a free header after running off Sanusi. The home side then came close to breaking the deadlock just before the break, but Costa denied Bastoni with a smart stop. Porto were under pressure for most of the first half but could have scored through Grujic. The former Liverpool midfielder got on the end of a backheel from Taremi before drilling a shot straight at Onana. Galeno then failed to convert the rebound.

45' + 3' HALF-TIME: INTER 0-0 PORTO

45' + 2' SAVE! Costa makes an excellent save. Dimarco's inswinging cross travels towards the near post with Bastoni ready for it. Leaping the highest, his downward header is saved by the goalkeeper who makes a smart stop.

45' + 1' Sanusi blocks Darmian's pass with his hand. Inter have one last chance to get the ball into the box before the break.

45' Dimarco whips the ball into the box searching for Dzeko. It looks to be going onto the head of the striker, but Marcano is there to flick it away from his head.

43' The ball goes long to Barella who chests it down to Dzeko. The former Manchester City man plays it down the right flank to Darmian before getting into the box, but the cross goes over everyone.

Otávio

Yellow Card

41' Otavio is the first Porto player to receive a yellow card after his unsporting behaviour.

F. Dimarco

Yellow Card

41' Dimarco goes into the book after rushing across the pitch to get involved in the pushing and pulling with both sets of players coming together.

40' Inter players are not happy. With the home side kicking the ball out after Darmian went down, Sanusi threw it down the left wing with Otavio rushing to get on the end of it. The referee stops the game.

39' POSSIBLE PENALTY! Looking to clear the ball away, Galeno connects with Darmian who pokes it away from the Inter man. There was not much connection on Darmian with the VAR checks now over.

37' SAVE AND OVER! What a chance for Porto to take the lead. Otavio threads the ball down the right of the box with Taremi getting to the byline. Going away from the goal, he backheels it to Grujic who slams a shot at Onana. Galeno is there for the rebound but misses the target.

34' Galeno isn't happy and throws his hands into the air. On the ball, the winger breaks forward with Darmian just behind him. Tussling with the Italian, Darmian gets back and makes a fantastic recovering tackle. Galeno thinks he was pulled back but nothing is given.

33' A powerful cross from Darmian goes past Dzeko. With the ball flying across, Martinez throws a foot at it but cannot get a good connection on it, almost completely missing it.

31' Otavio plays a short pass to Sanusi with the left-back dinking the ball into the box. Skriniar is there, but the defender heads it up in the air with Pepe Aquino volleying a shot towards the goal. However, Skriniar is there to make a block.

29' When Calhanoglu gets on the ball, he tries to make things happen. This time the Turkey international chips the ball over the Porto defence with Dzeko making a run, but Costa gets there just before the striker.

27' Porto have their first shot through Grujic, with the ball deflecting out to the Liverpool midfielder on the edge of the box. Running onto it, he lashes a first-time attempt well over.

26' Porto have slowed the game down in the last couple of minutes. Behind the ball for most of the game, they have retained possession by passing it around their defence waiting for an opening.

24' Taremi battles down the left wing, getting down the left wing after putting pressure on the Inter defence before winning a throw-in after being tackled by Acerbi. The defender does well, as the striker would have been able to get into the box if he was not stopped.

22' After a good start, Porto have been forced to sit deep for the last 15 minutes. They have struggled to deal with the width Inter have created, but are keeping the attackers relatively quiet.

20' Porto captain Pepe is going into the history books today. He is the third-oldest outfield player to play a Champions League knockout stage game, after Ryan Giggs in 2014 (40y 123d) and Alessandro Costacurta in 2006 (40y 2d).

18' Costa is alert to deny Calhanoglu who pushes the ball behind after the corner was taken quickly. Dimarco plays a one-two with the midfielder, allowing Calhanoglu to curl an attempt goalwards from a tight angle.

17' Dimarco and Calhanoglu are over a free-kick from a deep position. The latter takes, crossing towards Martinez who gets behind the Porto defence. About to shoot, Sanusi gets back to poke it behind.

16' Skriniar holds his head after colliding with Pepe Aquino but gets back to his feet quickly after without needing treatment.

15' From distance, the ball jumps up in front of Barella. With nobody around him, the midfielder tries his luck, but his shot goes well over.

13' OVER! Huge chance for Martinez. Dimarco gets the ball on the left flank, playing the ball over the head of Sanusi with Martinez free at the back of the box. Unmarked, the Argentine heads well over from close range.

11' Inter have kept the ball well in the opening 11 minutes of the game. Darmian and Dimarco are stretching the pitch, allowing the Inter centre-backs to play the ball wide when playing out of the back.

9' The play has stopped with Calhanoglu falling to the floor after colliding with Dzeko. After a short stop in play, the game continues.

7' Darmian plays a smart ball into the Porto defence, finding Martinez who had dropped deep. The striker then switches it out to the right flank with Barella bursting down the wing. Rushing forward, the midfielder tries to play it inside to Dzeko, but the ball is cleared.

6' Bastoni tries to go long with a ball over the top of the Porto defence, but Marcano is there to head it away.

5' Porto have pressed well in the opening few minutes. This time Galeno forces Onana to clear the ball off the pitch.

3' This is the 10th time that Inter have hosted a Portuguese side in European competition, while they are unbeaten in the previous nine – eight of which have been victories (D1). The only side to avoid defeat were Boavista, in a 0-0 draw in the UEFA Cup in October 1991.

1' Inter looking for a fast start through their two wingers. On the right, Darmian gets to the byline before crossing it to Dimarco. Making a late run, his volley from inside the box is blocked.

1' Porto get this Champions League game under way.

All four of the previous meetings between Inter and Porto came in the Champions League in 2005 – the Italian side went unbeaten in the 2004-05 Round of 16 (W1 D1), before both teams won a game each in the 2005-06 group stage.

Porto make four alterations to the side that secured all three points against Rio Ave in the Primeira Liga. The first comes at left-back, with Sanusi replacing Wendell. Playing with wingers instead of a narrow formation, Otavio and Galeno are picked instead of Franco and Eustaquio. Despite scoring the winner last time out, Martinez is out of the starting 11 with Uribe coming in.

Inter make four changes to the team that beat Udinese in Serie A. There is a switch in the goalkeeping position, with Onana preferred ahead of Handanovic. Sticking with three centre-backs, Darmian moves up to the right of the midfield, replacing Dumfries who drops to the bench. Leaving a spot in the defence, Skriniar comes in. A straight swap in the midfield sees Calhanoglu play instead of Brozovic. Scoring off the bench last time out, Martinez partners Dzeko in the attack with Lukaku missing out.

PORTO SUBS: Claudio Ramos, Fabio Cardoso, David Carmo, Rodrigo Conceicao, Daniel Namaso, Andre Franco, Wendell, Toni Martinez, Evanilson, Stephen Eustaquio, Goncalo Borges, Bernardo Folha.

PORTO (4-4-2): Diogo Costa; Joao Mario, Pepe, Ivan Marcano, Zaidu Sanusi; Otavio, Mateus Uribe, Marko Grujic, Galeno; Mehdi Taremi, Pepe Aquino.

INTER SUBS: Samir Handanovic, Alex Cordaz, Denzel Dumfries, Roberto Gagliardini, Stefan de Vrij, Robin Gosens, Raoul Bellanova, Kristjan Asllani, Danilo D'Ambrosio, Valentín Carboni, Marcelo Brozovic, Romelu Lukaku.

INTER (3-5-2): Andre Onana; Milan Skriniar, Francesco Acerbi, Alessandro Bastoni; Matteo Darmian, Nicolo Barella, Hakan Calhanoglu, Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Federico Dimarco; Lautaro Martinez, Edin Dzeko.

As for Porto, they pipped Club Brugge to the top spot in Group B after beating Atletico Madrid in their final game. Struggling at the start of their Champions League campaign, losing their first two matches, four successive wins saw them move from bottom to top. Porto have only lost one of their previous seven matches against Italian opponents in European competition (W4 D2). That lone defeat came away to Juventus in the Champions League Round of 16 second leg in 2020-21 (2-3), however, Sergio Conceicao’s side still progressed from the tie on aggregate.

Inter finished behind a dominant Bayern Munich to secure second place in Group C. With the German champions winning all six of their games and Viktoria Plzen losing all of theirs, it was between Simone Inzaghi’s side and Barcelona to see who would progress to the knockout rounds. It was the Serie A outfit who prevailed, beating the LaLiga leaders at San Siro before securing a point in the reverse fixture after an enthralling 3-3 draw.

Hello and welcome to live coverage of the Champions League round of 16 first-leg tie between Inter and Porto.

Internazionale v Porto Live Commentary, 22/02/2023

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