Antwerp vs Porto match facts

Antwerp must regroup quickly from Matchday 2 disappointment as they welcome Porto to Belgium looking to belatedly get their first UEFA Champions League campaign off the ground.

Beaten 5-0 at Barcelona in their first fixture, the Belgian double winners looked well placed to claim three points in their opening home Champions League game as they led Shakhtar Donetsk 2-0 at half-time on Matchday 2 only to concede three times in the second half and slip to a 3-2 defeat.

Porto were also beaten in their second fixture, going down 1-0 at home to Barcelona, although they had already banked three points courtesy of a 3-1 win against Shakhtar in Hamburg in their first game.

This is the sides' first meeting and only Antwerp's third game against Portuguese opponents; Porto, by contrast, are facing Belgian opponents for the second season in succession.

Form guide

Antwerp

Antwerp's only previous games against a Portuguese club came in the first round of the 1993/94 UEFA Cup, when they beat Marítimo 2-0 at home in the first leg before a 2-2 draw in Portugal.

Antwerp's only previous European Cup tie before this season came in 1957/58, Real Madrid winning 2-1 in Duerne in the first round first leg with Alfredo Di Stéfano scoring both goals before Héctor Rial's first-half hat-trick set up a 6-0 second-leg home victory at the Santiago Bernabéu.

Antwerp were the champions of Belgium for the fifth time, and the first since 1957, in 2022/23, a 94th-minute goal from Toby Alderweireld on the final day of the season securing a 2-2 draw with Genk to snatch the title.

Mark van Bommel's side also lifted the Belgian Cup for the second time in four seasons to complete a first domestic double.

Antwerp then beat AEK Athens 1-0 at home – despite playing almost half the match with ten men following Jelle Bataille's 50th-minute red card – and 2-1 away in the play-offs to reach the Champions League group stage in what was their first European Cup contest in 66 years.

The Great Old's most notable European campaign came when they finished runners-up in the 1992/93 European Cup Winners' Cup, losing 3-1 to Parma at Wembley. They remain the last Belgian club to reach the final of a UEFA competition.

This is Antwerp's fifth successive European campaign, their participation in the 2019/20 Europa League having ended a 25-year absence from continental competition.

The Belgian side took part in UEFA Europa Conference League qualifying last season, beating Drita of Kosovo 2-0 on aggregate in the second qualifying round and Norway's Lillestrøm 5-1 in the next round only to lose 4-2 on aggregate to İstanbul Başakşehir in the play-offs (1-1 a, 1-3 h).

Before losing to Barcelona and Shakhtar, Antwerp had suffered only one defeat in their previous ten European matches (W6 D3).

Antwerp's home European record is W16 D7 L12; they have won four and lost five of their last ten matches.

Porto

Record vs Belgian clubs: W9 D2 L7 F27 A25
Away record vs Belgian clubs: W3 D0 L6

Porto played out two remarkable games against Club Brugge in last season's group stage, going down 4-0 at home before winning by the same scoreline in Belgium on Matchday 5.

Porto had never lost at home against Belgian opposition (W6 D2) before their emphatic Matchday 2 defeat by Club Brugge.

The Dragons have, however, suffered six defeats in their nine away games against Belgian clubs – although they have won the last three, a 3-0 victory at Genk in the 2010/11 Europa League qualifying play-off first leg (7-2 agg) preceding a 2-1 win at Club Brugge in the 2016/17 Champions League stage and last season's success.

The home defeat by Club Brugge last season is the only one of Porto's last six games against Belgian opponents they have failed to win.

Porto are appearing in the Champions League group stage for the 27th time, level with Bayern and one behind the competition record held by Barcelona and Real Madrid.

This is the Portuguese club's 12th appearance in the last 13 seasons, with five of their last six campaigns having extended into the knockout rounds.

The Dragons were edged out by eventual runners-up Inter in the 2022/23 round of 16, losing 1-0 in Milan before a 0-0 draw in Portugal. Porto had finished first in Group B ahead of Club Brugge, Bayer Leverkusen and Atlético de Madrid.

Porto have won six of their last 12 away games in the Champions League, group stage to final (D3 L3).

Porto were European champions in 1987 and 2004. They are the only Portuguese side to reach the Champions League final.

Links and trivia

Porto pair Jorge Sánchez and Francisco Conceição were team-mates of Antwerp's Owen Wijndal at Ajax last season.

Fran Navarro played for Belgian side Lokeren in 2019/20 on loan from Valencia.

Toby Alderweireld was in the Belgium side that ended the reign of Pepe's Portugal as European champions with a 1-0 win in the UEFA EURO 2020 round of 16.

Francisco Conceição was a substitute for Portugal in a 1-1 draw against the Netherlands in the 2023 UEFA European Under-21 Championship group stage; Jurgen Ekkelenkamp started for the Dutch.

Porto coach Sérgio Conceição played in Belgium for Standard Liège between 2004 and 2007. He never faced Antwerp.

Conceição started his coaching career as assistant at Standard in May 2010.

Latest news

Antwerp

The Matchday 2 defeat at home to Shakhtar ended Antwerp's run of three successive 0-0 draws and four games without a goal.

The Belgian champions' record in all competitions this season is W6 D6 L4. They suffered their second defeat in three matches on Saturday, going down 3-2 at Charleroi despite twice coming from behind.

Jurgen Ekkelenkamp scored Antwerp's first equaliser; he was replaced by 17-year-old George Ilenikhena, who got his side's second leveller with his first goal for the club.

Antwerp ended a five-game winless run (D3 L2) with a 4-1 home win against Eupen on 8 October. That is their only victory in their last seven matches.

Arthur Vermeeren and Michel-Ange Balikwisha both scored their first league goals of the season, with Arbnor Muja getting his third.

Balikwisha has four goals this season in all competitions, including two in the Champions League. He had found the net in successive games before drawing a blank at the weekend.

Muja scored Antwerp's first Champions League group goal on Matchday 2 and also has four in all competitions in 2023/24.

Mark van Bommel's side have won four of their first 11 league games; they have drawn five of the last eight.

The defeat of Eupen is one of only two Antwerp victories in nine games in all competitions (D4 L3), the other a 3-0 win at Westerlo on 15 September.

The Matchday 1 loss at Barcelona was the first time Antwerp had conceded five goals in a game since a 5-2 UEFA Europa League reverse at Rangers on 25 February 2021. It was their heaviest defeat since another 5-0 loss, at home to Sint-Truiden in the Belgian second division on 1 March 2014.

Vincent Janssen made it five league goals for the season with the opener at Westerlo; only Muja (three goals) and Ekkelenkamp (two) have also scored more than once.

Antwerp were 6-0 winners at home to Kortrijk on 11 August, the first time they had scored six goals in a game in exactly ten years, since a 7-2 win at KSK Heist in the second division on 11 August 2013, and their biggest victory since a 7-0 win at Beveren on 1 March 2008.

Antwerp beat Mechelen 5-4 on penalties after a 1-1 draw in the Belgian Super Cup on 23 July. It was their first appearance in the match since 1992 and their first victory.

The 18-year-old Vermeeren and Mandela Keita, 21, both made their Belgium debuts as late substitutes during the 3-2 win in Austria on 13 October with which the Red Devils sealed their place at UEFA EURO 2024.

Keita was taken off injured midway through the first half at Charleroi on Saturday.

Ritchie De Laet has been out since going off with a knee injury at half-time in a 0-0 draw against RWDM on 23 September.

Jacob Ondrejka, who has not played since 8 September, has been sidelined by a broken bone in his foot.

Second-choice goalkeeper Ortwin De Wolf made his first appearance this season for Antwerp's B team on 7 October having recovered from a finger injury.

Björn Engels has been sidelined since February 2022 due to an Achilles tendon injury.

Porto

Porto started their defence of the Portuguese Cup – which they have won in the last two seasons – with a 2-0 win at fourth tier Vilar de Perdizes on Friday thanks to a goal in each half from André Franco, his first since 10 March, and Evanilson, who has scored in his last two appearances.

Evanilson has four goals in his last six matches in all competitions.

Porto are yet to score more than two goals in a match in the Portuguese Liga this season and have not won a league match by more than a one-goal margin.

The Dragons have scored in nine of their 12 matches this season, losing all three in which they failed to find the net.

Porto were 1-0 Liga winners at home to Portimonense on 8 October, Evanilson scoring the early winner on his first start since 15 September.

That was Porto's only goal in three games in all competitions before Friday's cup victory.

Porto will face Estoril and Leixões in Group D of the Portuguese League Cup, of which they are also the holders. The first match will be away at Estoril on 6 December.

With three goals in 12 matches in all competitions, Galeno is Porto's joint top scorer this season alongside Evanilson. The former is the of only player to have featured in all Porto's matches in 2023/24.

Sérgio Conceição's side started their season by losing 2-0 against Benfica in the Portuguese Super Cup on 9 August, with captain Pepe sent off late on.

The Dragons have also had a player dismissed in each of their last two league games – losing David Carmo to a red card against Portimonense and Fábio Cardoso in a 1-0 loss at Benfica on 29 September.

Diogo Costa played 90 minutes as Portugal sealed qualification for UEFA EURO 2024 with a 3-2 win over Slovakia at the Estadio do Dragão on 13 October. Having kept a clean sheet in the 5-0 win in Bosnia and Herzegovina three days later, those two Slovakia goals are the only ones Costa has conceded in his last six international appearances.

Mehdi Taremi scored one goal and set up another as Iran beat Jordan 3-1 in a 13 October friendly.

Francisco Conceição scored in both games as Portugal beat Belarus 6-1 and Greece 2-0 in qualifying for the 2025 UEFA European Under-21 Championship on 13 and 17 October respectively.

Eustaquio suffered an injury to his left leg while training for Canada and returned to Porto for treatment. He was absent on Friday.

Iván Marcano injured his right knee during the 1-0 win at Estrela da Amadora on 15 September and was diagnosed with a damaged cruciate ligament, meaning he will be sidelined for several months.

Pepe has not played since Matchday 1 due to a calf injury.

Zaidu picked up an injury on Matchday 1, with Sérgio Conceição ruling out the Nigerian defender "for several weeks". He is yet to resume training.