Manchester City travel to Porto this afternoon ahead of tomorrow night's Champions League opener in northern Portugal
Former Premier League centre-back Jan Bednarek scored for FC Porto on Friday night but will miss the Champions League clash against Manchester City
Former Premier League centre-back Jan Bednarek(Image: Miguel Lemos/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
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Porto head coach Francesco Farioli has confirmed he will be without Jan Bednarek, Victor Froholdt and Samu Aghehowa for their Champions League opener against Manchester City tomorrow night. Former Southampton and Aston Villa centre-back Bednarek will miss the Portuguese side's opening two matches in the Champions League after he received a red card against Nottingham Forest in the Europa League last season.
That suspension has rolled over into this campaign, meaning he will miss the clashes with City and Real Betis. Centre-forward Samu is a long-term absentee after suffering a cruciate ligament tear back in February. Meanwhile, Victor Froholdt is also set to miss out after being knocked unconscious during Friday night's victory over Moreirense in Liga Portugal.
Speaking to the Portuguese press ahead of the game, Farioli said: "If we look at the first Europa League game, apart from Diogo [Costa], we don't have all the players in the central area, because we don't have Bednarek, Froholdt and Samu. Unfortunately, we don't have everyone for different reasons, but it's an opportunity for the rest of the group to show what they're worth on the biggest stages, to respond to the work they always put in on the field.
"It's an opportunity for the group to minimise these absences and achieve the objective for tomorrow."
The former Nice head coach is managing in the Champions League for the first time on Tuesday night, and he admitted in his press conference that he is relishing the chance to come up against City.
"The most important thing is the spirit," Farioli added. "This morning in the meeting we were laughing about the good news and the bad news. The bad news is that we're going to have to run a lot. The good news is that we have the legs and lungs to put on a great performance against one of the best teams in the world.
"We know who we are. With respect and humility, but with the right level of ambition and desire that, especially at the Dragao, we can do something special with our fans helping us. Which is what FC Porto deserves."
He concluded: "FC Porto's history in the Champions League is enormous. Considering the number of games played, appearances, and the two trophies in the museum. Now, we're facing one of the main contenders to reach the final and win the title.
"We have enormous respect for our opponent, for their individual quality, their organisation, the legacy they created with Pep Guardiola, and the new era with Enzo Maresca.
"It's a game that demands our best, but we'll do everything to make the fans happy. Whenever we play at the Dragao, something special can happen."
Maresca will conduct his own pre-match press conference in Porto this evening. You can follow what he has to say here.