Sadio Mane will be looking for a landmark goal on a night that could see Jordan Henderson hit another milestone, with Porto familiar hosts in the Champions League.
Should Mane score tonight, he will join Michael Owen in joint-third place on the club’s all-time European goalscorers list with 22 goals, with only Steven Gerrard and Mo Salah above them.
He will also become only the third Liverpool player to score 20 goals in Liverpool’s premier European competition after Gerrard (30) and Salah (27).
Mane has scored more goals for Liverpool against Porto than any other Reds player (four in four appearances); Roberto Firmino has three goals in four and Salah two in four.
The No. 10 scored a hat-trick on this ground in 2018 – Liverpool third ever away from home in European competition.
Hendo’s milestone night
Jordan Henderson if he plays will become the 27th player in Liverpool history to reach the landmark of 400 appearances in all competitions.
He would also become just the 14th player to play in Europe for the Reds on 60 occasions.
Alisson could make his 50th UEFA club competition appearance. He has played for both Liverpool and Roma on this ground and not lost.
Liverpool vs. Portuguese clubs
Liverpool have won 12 of their 24 meetings with Portuguese opposition, with six draws and six defeats.
In Portugal, they have won four and lost five of 12 visits.
Porto are one of five teams from Portugal that Liverpool have faced – the others being Vitoria Setubal, Benfica, Boavista and Sporting Braga.
The Reds have scored as many goals in their last two visits to Portugal (nine) as they achieved in the previous 10.
A good omen
Liverpool are the only English team to beat Porto in Porto more than once and could do it for a third time tonight.
In each of the four campaigns the teams have met, the Reds have gone on to at least reach the semi-finals.
Jota’s reunion
Diogo Jota scored once in eight Champions League games for Porto, that being in a 5-0 home defeat of Leicester in 2016/17 while on loan from Atletico Madrid.
He played 38 times that season under Porto coach Nuno Esperito Santo, scoring nine goals.
Jota has scored once in two games against Porto, while with Pacos Ferreira in the league in 2015/16.
Porto’s unwanted record
Porto’s heaviest-ever home European defeat is the 5-0 they suffered at the hands of Liverpool in 2018 and was the first time in Europe they had ever conceded three goals at home.
They have been drawn against English teams 22 times, and against nine different opponents.
At home against English teams, they have won eight and lost six of 22 games – though the last match (against Chelsea last season) was played in Seville.
The other five defeats in Porto have come in the last nine meetings.
Grujic’s rare feat
Marko Grujic could become the second man to first play for and then against Liverpool in the Champions League under Jurgen Klopp after Philippe Coutinho.
He made 16 appearances for the Reds in total (one goal), two of which came in the Champions League in 2017/18 as a substitute.
He was Klopp’s first signing (from Red Star Belgrade for £5.1 million).
The referee
Sergei Karasev (Russia) has never reffed Liverpool before and taken charge of Porto once (2019/20 vs. Feyenoord).
He was in charge of last month’s UEFA Super Cup final – Chelsea vs. Villarreal.
He has reffed six games this season in all competitions, showing 28 yellows and four reds and awarding three penalties.
This season’s scorers
Porto: Diaz 5, Taremi 4, Martinez 3, Marcano 1, Oliveira 1, Pepe 1, Uribe 1
Liverpool: Salah 6, Jota 3, Mane 3, Minamino 2, Fabinho 1, Firmino 1, Henderson 1, Jones 1, Keita 1, Origi 1, own goals 1
* Stats courtesy of LFC statistician Ged Rea (@ged0407).
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