Porto player could be unavailable for tonight’s clash against Liverpool | OneFootball

Liverpool will face off against Porto at the Estadio do Dragao tonight.

However, the Primeira Liga side could be without defender Pepe for the Champions League group stage clash due to injury.

Porto boss Sergio Conceicao has revealed that the 38-year-old did not train yesterday. But, Conceicao has not entirely ruled out Pepe from featuring against Liverpool.

“It’s not a smile (on my face),” Conceicao said, as quoted by the Tribune Express.

“(Pepe) didn’t train today (yesterday), we’ll see tomorrow (today). We’ll see until the last minute if he can recover. The question is important because, whether Pepe plays or not can interfere with our positioning on the field and our game plan.

“Having Pepe or not makes a big difference. Not that the other players are worthless but we are talking about a player who, despite his age, is fast and has a lot of experience and in these types of games.

“It is essential to have capable people, especially in such an important position (centre-back).”

VIDEO: Throwback to Sadio Mane’s hat-trick against Porto

VIDEO: Diogo Jota discusses improving at LFC, forcing his way into the side & Porto test

ANFIELD WATCH VERDICT

Pepe is a very good centre-back. You don’t make 334 appearances for Real Madrid’s first-team by mistake.

Despite the fact that Pepe is 38 years of age, he has shown that he is still good enough to play first-team football.

The defender averaged a WhoScored player rating of 6.91 across the 2020-21 Primeira Liga campaign.

Therefore, Pepe’s absence would no doubt benefit Liverpool tonight. However, even if the defender is unavailable for the match, the Reds will still have to perform if they wish to claim the three points.

There are no easy games in the Champions League. We wish Liverpool all the best ahead of the clash.