Start this season for the “Locomotive” was extremely unfortunate. Despite serious financial investments and the attraction of such well-known football players as Grzegorz Krychovyak, Benedict Höwedes and Fyodor Smolov, the railroad workers for a long time could not feel for their game and put a set of points on the conveyor. But if in the national championship the team of Yuri Semin still managed to feel confident over time and remind himself of the very sample of the championship season, then the situation in the Champions League looked more than deplorable. Red-green lost in the first three meetings with a goal difference of 1: 7.
This led to the fact that Lokomotiv was in a critical situation by the fourth match of the group stage. In the event of a loss to “Porto” and the victory of one of the teams in a parallel duel, the railway workers could part with chances to reach the playoffs of the main club tournament of the Old World. In addition, the loss almost negated their hopes for qualifying for the Europa League, because the gap from the nearest competitor would be at least four points.
At the same time, the fans of the reigning champions of Russia had every reason to hope that in the fourth match of the group stage of the Champions League they would manage to score their first points in the tournament. The reason for this was five victories in a row in the RPL and success in the Cup of Russia, as well as the manner in which they were gained. In six meetings, Lokomotiv scored 15 goals, conceding only three times.
The duel, which took place in the pouring rain, began for the railway men extremely unpleasantly. Lokomotiv was grossly mistaken in defense and allowed the Portuguese to launch a smashing attack. Marega pulled the ball right up to the front line and rolled it out to Herrera as if on a saucer. Ector did not blunder and almost freely hit the gate Guilherme.
To the credit of the red-green it is worth noting that the missed ball did not discourage them at all. Wards Semin did not give up, and began to weave attacking combinations and create dangerous moments at the gate Iker Casillas. Miranchuk, who played the role of extreme forwards in this match, looked especially bright. The brothers personally had several opportunities to leave out of work the legendary Spaniard, but each time they lacked either luck or precision. At the 21st minute, the ball after hitting Alexei hit the crossbar, and a quarter of an hour later Anton hit the ball.
By the end of the inning, Lokomotiv finally grew bolder and with great forces went forward, for which it immediately paid. The railroad again made a gross mistake in the center of the field and allowed the Portuguese jet to escape to the counterattack. Herrera and Marega were again in the spotlight, this time changing roles. Ector brought Mussa to a rendezvous with Guilherme with a beautiful cast, and the Malian forward irresistibly struck between the goalkeeper's legs.
The game on a collision course continued in the second half, but Lokomotiv began to look much brighter. In many ways, this was the appearance on the field of Jefferson Farfan, who replaced often mistaken in the first half of the meeting, Manuel Fernandes. The railway workers gradually began to crowd their rival, and at the end of an hour of the game, they were able to reduce the difference in the score. It is noteworthy that it was the Peruvian who distinguished himself by throwing the ball into the net with a graceful nod.
Unfortunately, the Muscovites failed to develop their advantage. Lokomotiv could not stand the hard pressure from opponents and grossly mistaken in defense. Guilherme unsuccessfully handed the ball from the gate, and the wards Sergio Conceisau did not fail to take advantage of such courtesy. In two programs, they went through the entire defense of the opponent, and Jesus Corona easily beat the goalkeeper.
Semin threw into the battle recovered from the injury of Fyodor Smolov and until the last minute drove his players ahead, but it did not bring a result. The third missed ball demoralized Loko, whose players were honored only for a couple of raids on the property of Casillas. The most dangerous of them arose after the error of the Spanish goalkeeper, who played the head uncertainly at the exit. For a few seconds Porto’s goal was empty, but Farfan did not dare to strike. And already in compensated time, the final score was set by Otavio, who was upset by Guilherme with an excellent blow.
Lokomotiv suffered a fourth defeat in the Champions League group stage and lost all chances of reaching the playoffs of the tournament. This became clear after the victory of “Schalke” over “Galatasaray” in a parallel match. Now the wards of Semin have ghostly chances to compete for a ticket to the Europa League. To do this, they need to win two final fights and hope that the Turkish club will stumble in a meeting with Porto.