FC Porto moved on step closer to advancing to the quarterfinals after defeating Malaga 1-0 in the opening leg of the Champions League Round of 16.
The Portuguese side came in as the favorite despite being the runner up in Group A. The match was pretty even throughout its duration with the teams trading chances throughout. The first half ended in a 0-0 draw despite Porto's best efforts but Joao Moutino finally broke through in 56th minute to score the game's only goal; Fernando through a cross that was met by Moutino. Malaga demanded an offside call, but the referees would have none of it.
Porto dominated play with 64 percent of the possession. The Portuguese side also garnered 11 corner kicks to Malaga's two and Porto created18 shots; Malaga only got two shots and none were on target. The match was also rather tame with only one yellow card.
The Porto win sets up an interesting second leg. Malaga did not score an away goal and must stop Porto from tallying in their home court. More importantly, Malaga must win by a two-goal margin to avoid the penalty shootout.
The second leg will be played on March 13 in Malaga.