Porto – Nottingham Forest

In Portugal, the home team will play better than their opponents.

At the Estádio do Dragão the first leg of one of the most interesting Europa League quarter-final ties will take place. Porto is the second most likely contender to win this continental tournament after Aston Villa. The Portuguese side finished fifth in the group stage, collecting 17 points from eight matchdays. Having secured direct progression to the Round of 16, Porto faced a not-so-fortunate draw that pitted them against Stuttgart. The Swabians are in the Bundesliga's top four, but they could not offer any resistance to Francesco Farioli's team — 1-2 and 0-2. Nottingham Forest in the current European season is the only club to have changed coaches three times. The Forest began the football year with Nuno Espírito Santo at the helm. After him, the coaching stints of Ange Postecoglou and Sean Dyche proved unsuccessful. Now Vítor Pereira is trying to stitch together a good team from a disparate group of good players. Nottingham Forest finished thirteenth in the Europa League group stage, which meant they had to play in the playoff round. There the Forest comfortably defeated Fenerbahçe, but faced serious difficulties in the Round of 16. The ties with the familiar Midtjylland went to a penalty shootout, in which the English side prevailed. Bookmakers have named the home team the favorites for the upcoming match, offering odds of 2.14 on their victory. Porto and Nottingham Forest met in England last autumn. In that match the Portuguese club suffered its only defeat in the Europa League group stage. The Forest, under Sean Dyche, scored two unanswered goals against Porto, successfully converting two penalties. Nottingham Forest are currently sixteenth in the table, three points clear of the relegation zone. In the previous round, the Forest beat Tottenham, a direct relegation rival, but that victory was their first in the Premier League since late January. Porto is leading the domestic league and, undoubtedly, longs for a triumph on the European stage. The Portuguese side has everything it takes to win the upcoming match.