Liverpool beat Porto in first leg of Champions League quarter-finals

*Goals: Keita 5', Firmino 26'.

Liverpool opened the scoring early in a quick transition from defence to attack. James Milner, playing at left-back, passed the ball from home to Sadio Mane in one touch. The Senegalese forward dribbled the ball and then passed it inside to Roberto Firmino. Porto's defenders failed to close down Liverpool's centre-forward, allowing him to hold the ball and lay it off for Naby Keita to finish. The shot hit Oliver Torres and went into the top corner, leaving Iker Casillas helpless.

The home side were comfortable with the early goal. They kept up the pressure in the box while Porto were confident on the counter-attack, but it wasn't enough to beat Liverpool's defence, with Virgil van Dijk providing excellent coverage. Mohamed Salah had a chance to score when he picked out a back pass from the Porto midfielder. The Egyptian's good cover allowed him to pick out Felipe, but his effort was deflected wide.

However, Liverpool scored their second goal shortly after this move, following a training-like combination. Firmino tapped the ball into the net from close range after a cross from Trent Alexander-Arnold. Liverpool's centre-forward had dropped deep in this situation and Porto's defence completely missed his movement.

Liverpool had a few loose minutes after their second goal. They almost paid for their mistake when they let Moussa Marega play Alisson. But the striker, who is the third highest scorer in the Champions League behind Lionel Messi and Robert Lewandowski, did not finish with enough force to beat the goalkeeper. From the next corner, Marega turned and volleyed inside the box after his team-mate won the second ball, but the shot was too soft and not powerful enough.

Early in the second half, Mane put the ball into Porto's net but the referee disallowed the goal due to offside. Overall, Liverpool were able to control the ball comfortably for the next 45 minutes of the match. Despite being two goals down, the away team still played very cautiously and did not rush. Porto's concentration prevented Liverpool from creating more scoring opportunities and Jurgen Klopp had to bring on strikers Divock Origi and Daniel Sturridge to find more goals.

Despite receiving a lot of passes from his teammates, this was a disappointing match for Salah. Three days after reaching the 50-goal mark for the Anfield team with a solo goal against Southampton, the Egyptian striker failed to score. His dribbling was caught out by Porto's defense. Salah's poor form was partly to blame for Liverpool's failure to score despite pressing.

Porto's best chance of the second half fell to Marega again, coming face-to-face with Alisson after a pass from his team-mate. This was a similar situation to Liverpool's opening goal. But the Porto striker's left-footed shot was off target. Marega also had a close-range shot that forced Alisson to block.

In a game where the home team had to play a sneaky game, Marega performed quite well and continuously caused problems for Liverpool's defense despite having to face the most expensive center-back, and considered the best in the world at the moment, Van Dijk. Porto's failure to score was a pity for the Portuguese team considering the chances they created. But the 0-2 loss was not a disaster for Sergio Conceicao's team. The way Porto played at the end of the match showed that they were confident that they could turn the tables in the second leg on April 17.