VfB Stuttgart

vs

FC Porto

Preview

Stuttgart

• Stuttgart have won three, drawn one and lost one of their last five games in all competitions, and scored 13 goals in their last five Bundesliga matches, including a 4-0 home victory over Wolfsburg.
• Stuttgart are in fine form, unbeaten in their last five Bundesliga games and having just swept Celtic aside in the previous round of the Europa League with a dominant 4-1 away win at Celtic Park.

Porto

• Porto have won four of their last five Primeira Liga games, recently suffered a shock defeat to Casa Pia and lost top scorer Samu Aghehowa to a serious knee injury.
• Porto are the class of the Portuguese league with 21 wins in 24 games played this season and conceding few goals in the Primeira Liga.

Head-to-Head

Stuttgart

• An aggressive pressing game, vertical transitions and overloads down the wings have been key to Stuttgart’s high goal output in Bundesliga and Europe while, up front, Deniz Undav has been the talisman and top scorer with double-digit league goals.
• Bilal El Khannouss has been their playmaker in Europe, contributing goals and set-piece threat, while Chris Führich and Jamie Leweling offer width and attacking threat.

Porto

Betting Insights

• VfB Stuttgart are slight favorites to win at 2.18 with Porto at 3.58 and the draw at 3.62 in the match result market at the time of writing.
• The Under 2.5 Goals market at 2.07 looks like it could land in what should be a tense and tactically interesting game.

Prediction

• The hosts come into the clash in better form than the visitors, but Porto are the bigger club with more European pedigree and it is likely to be a closely-fought game.
• Stuttgart’s strong home form and raucous MHP Arena may be enough to edge this first leg, but Porto’s superior organisation and defensive solidity should keep this match close enough that a draw or the home side winning by one goal is on the cards.