Arsenal - FC Porto predictions and free betting tips [12/03/2024]

On Tuesday, 12th March, as part of the round of 16 return match in the Champions League, Arsenal will host Porto on their home turf. Mikel Arteta’s charges clinched victory over Brentford with a 2:1 scoreline last Saturday, whilst the 'Dragons' thrashed Portimonense 0:3 and will strive to maintain their slight edge at Emirates Stadium.

Predicted Line-ups

Arsenal: Raya; White, Saliba, Gabriel, Zinchenko; Odegaard, Jorginho, Rice; Saka, Havertz, Jesus.
Porto: Costa; Mario, Pepe, Otavio, Wendell; Varela, Gonzalez; Conceicao, Pepe, Galeno; Evanilson.

Stadium

The match will take place in London at the Emirates Stadium.

Arsenal

Three weeks ago, Arsenal suffered a sensational 1:0 defeat at the hands of the 'Dragons' in the first match at Dragao, with Galeno's injury-time goal becoming decisive. This fiasco was a shocking surprise for the Gunners' fans as their beloved team had been enjoying a five-match winning streak in the championship, achieving impressive thrashings in the matches against West Ham (0:6) and Burnley (0:5).

However, the 'Gunners’ quickly rebounded and made an immediate return to winning ways in the Premier League, successively overcoming Newcastle (4:1) and Sheffield United (0:6), and also managing a hard-fought victory over Brentford last weekend (2:1). Thanks to this triumph and the draw between Liverpool and Manchester City on Sunday, Arsenal now sits alone at the top of the Premier League table. The Dutch defender Timber has been in the infirmary for several months and has yet to recover from a torn cruciate ligament. 

Porto

In contrast to the Londoners, Porto has twice won the Champions League in its history, most notably in 2004 along with Jose Mourinho - a bitter memory for Monaco fans. The 'Dragons' completely outplayed Arsenal in the first match, scoring a spectacular injury-time goal to send the crowd into raptures (1:0 victory). With regard to their domestic league, the blue-whites are only in the third place in the standings, lagging behind the Lisbon-based clubs Sporting and Benfica.

Between their matches with the Gunners, the visitors have played four matches, including a victory in the quarterfinals of the Portuguese Cup over Santa Clara (1:2) and three league encounters: a draw with Gil Vicente (1:1), demolition victories in their home derby against Benfica (0:5) and an away win against Portimonense on Friday (0:3) - with Nico, Galeno and Pepe all finding the back of the net. Generally, Porto has not been performing particularly well away from home: they’ve only emerged victorious in 4 of their last 9 matches across all competitions. 

Head to Head Encounters

The match three weeks ago was the two teams’ eighth face-to-face encounter and only Porto’s third victory. The last time Porto and Arsenal met prior to this was in the 2010 Champions League round of 16 (2:1 and 6:2 in favour of the Gunners).

Prediction for the match Arsenal - Porto

Arsenal is determined to take revenge on their home ground and will storm the Dragons' goal from the get-go. Of course, Porto is a tough nut to crack but is significantly inferior to the hosts in both players' class and current results. I see no ground for the blue-whites to withstand the Londoners’ attack again, so I’m placing my bet on the hosts’ victory with a -1.5 handicap.

Total Goals Prediction

Arsenal already boasts a vibrant attack line, and Jesus, who has just come back from an injury, will further strengthen the Gunners. I place my bet on Arsenal’s individual total of over 2 goals.

Corners Prediction

Arsenal needs to turn the tide, so they will besiege the Portuguese team’s goal right from the start. I bet on Arsenal's individual total corners in the first half being over 3.5.

Yellow Cards Prediction

Porto will be trying hard to disrupt the pace of the game, since they are leading in the matchup - I bet on the blue-whites winning in terms of yellow cards.

Score Prediction

I'll bet on an exact score of 3:1 in favour of Arsenal.