Nuno keen for Porto to end England misery
The Portuguese club has never won in 16 games away to English clubs ahead of the Champions League clash against Leicester City at the King Power Stadium on Tuesday.
Published : Sep 27, 2016 09:59 IST
Porto coach Nuno Espirito Santo challenged his team to end its poor run in England when it faces Leicester City in the Champions League.
Incredibly, the Portuguese club has never won in 16 games away to English clubs ahead of the clash at the King Power Stadium on Tuesday.
Nuno is aware of the challenge awaiting his team, but insists it is capable of correcting the record. "These moments are like records – they are there to break," he said, via UEFA.
"The Premier League is one of most competitive leagues in the world with very good squads and fantastic teams, what Leicester did is remarkable and we must respect it."
Nuno, whose team started Group G with a draw at home to Copenhagen, played down the impact the poor record could have on his players.
"One of the most important things is I don't think any players in our squad have been in these past games," he said.
"We cannot refer to them as they were not there. It is a new game. It is a challenge, a challenge we have to go into believing we can go beyond our limits."
Set to be awaiting Porto is Islam Slimani, the striker who moved to Leicester from Sporting CP in August.
Slimani has scored five goals in three games against Porto this year, and Nuno is wary of the Algeria international.
"We know the player, we faced him in our competition, he is a player you cannot ignore – he is a striker and a goalscorer," he said.
"But Leicester is about the whole team – [Danny] Drinkwater, [Jamie] Vardy, [Riyad] Mahrez. The only way to control is to be balanced and control the game as a team."