UCL: Maresca Should Watch It! Man City Can Lose In Portugal Vs Porto

Manchester City may have started the new Premier League season perfectly, but Enzo Maresca should not allow that record to deceive him. Porto are waiting in Portugal, and this could be one of those Champions League nights where City discover that European football is a completely different animal. The Cityzens begin their 2026–27 campaign at the Dragão on Tuesday, and anybody expecting an easy Manchester City victory may be setting themselves up for disappointment. For years, City were almost impossible to beat in Europe, but that aura has disappeared somewhat. They won the Champions League during their famous treble-winning 2022–23 campaign, yet the club have subsequently suffered three consecutive eliminations against Real Madrid. Even more worrying, City have lost nine of their last 17 Champions League matches after previously going 26 games unbeaten in the competition. That is not the record of an unbeatable team anymore. Maresca has inherited a side that has undergone an expensive summer rebuild, and there are already signs that something different is developing. City still have Erling Haaland, who scored against Coventry City at the weekend to help preserve their perfect Premier League start. The Norwegian has also scored three goals in his last two matches. But Maresca should remember one thing: Haaland cannot be expected to rescue City every time the team struggles. The striker is chasing another Champions League milestone too. Haaland has already scored 34 goals in just 39 appearances in the competition and needs only three more to surpass Sergio Agüero's Manchester City Champions League record of 36. Those numbers are ridiculous. However, Porto will be more interested in stopping the supply to Haaland than admiring his statistics. If the Portuguese champions can isolate him, City could suddenly look much less frightening. Porto, meanwhile, are not entering this match in poor form. They won the Primeira Liga last season under Francesco Farioli and have continued their excellent start by winning their opening five league games with an impressive 11–1 aggregate score. Farioli is also making his Champions League managerial debut, and this is the perfect opportunity for him to announce himself. After rebuilding his reputation at Porto following his difficult spell at Ajax, he will want his team to show Europe exactly what they can do. And this is where Maresca should be very careful. Porto at the Dragão is not the same Porto you see on a league table. The Portuguese giants have historically struggled against Premier League opposition, losing 10 of their last 16 matches against English clubs and winning only two. But that statistic could actually make Tuesday more dangerous. Porto know they have something to prove, while City arrive carrying the pressure of being the bigger club and the expected winner. Maresca also cannot afford to underestimate Porto's ability to absorb pressure and then attack quickly. The hosts have players capable of turning a single mistake into a major problem, while Santiago Giménez could be given a bigger attacking role after making his debut from the bench at the weekend. With Samu Aghehowa recovering from an ACL injury, Giménez and André Silva will provide Farioli with different options in attack. City themselves have some selection questions to answer. Nico O'Reilly was a late withdrawal against Coventry after picking up an injury during the warm-up, while Jérémy Doku remains out with a calf problem. Matheus Nunes could start at right-back, with new signing Ayyoub Bouaddi potentially featuring in midfield. These may look like small details, but Champions League away games can be decided by exactly these kinds of changes. There is also a psychological issue for City. They have not lost their opening Champions League match in six of the last seven seasons, with Lyon responsible for their most recent opening-game defeat back in 2018. That record is impressive, but it also means Porto have an opportunity to destroy a statistic that has survived for years. Imagine the headlines if Farioli's Porto beat Maresca's new-look City on the opening night. Of course, City still have enough quality to win this game. Phil Foden, Rayan Cherki, Haaland and the rest of Maresca's attacking options can punish Porto if they are given space. The problem is that City may not get the comfortable possession they are accustomed to enjoying. Porto will have the home crowd behind them, and their excellent start suggests they will not be intimidated simply because the visitors wear sky blue. Maresca therefore needs to get his tactics right from the first whistle. The temptation will be to dominate the ball and push Porto backwards, but City must also protect themselves against counters. One careless pass, one adventurous full-back caught out of position or one midfield turnover could completely change the match. This is Champions League football, not a Premier League training exercise. So I am going against the obvious prediction here: Manchester City can lose in Portugal. They may still scrape a narrow victory, but anybody expecting another routine European performance should watch Porto carefully. City are still rebuilding, Maresca is still establishing his identity, and the Champions League has already shown that this version of City can be vulnerable. If Porto start aggressively and score first, the pressure will be enormous. Maresca should watch it — because this could be the night Porto remind Manchester City that Europe does not fear reputations.