published: wednesday 6 november 2013, 20.16cet fc zenit 1-1 fc porto
hulk equalised for zenit but then had a penalty saved by former team-mate helton during a draw that leaves group g finely poised.
fc zenit and fc porto remain second and third respectively in uefa champions league group g after playing out an entertaining 1-1 draw.
the visitors drew first blood, taking a deserved 23rd-minute lead thanks to a well-directed header by lucho gonzález. zenit were struggling to find any rhythm, but got back into the match before the half-hour mark when hulk seized on a defensive mix-up. the former porto favourite had a chance to put zenit in front early in the second period, but his low penalty was easily saved by helton.
ıt was the portuguese side, defeated 1-0 in the reverse fixture a fortnight ago, who got off to the more assured start. they looked comfortable in possession and danilo's left-footed drive on seven minutes almost beat yuri lodygin. the right-back was having quite an impact and it was his measured cross that allowed the dragons to move ahead midway through the half. lucho supplied the finish with an excellent header that crept inside lodygin's left-hand post.
luciano spalletti's team were having problems establishing any fluidity in attack and their cause was not helped when danny, the russian premier league's top scorer, was forced off with a muscle strain. however, they got a slice of luck on 28 minutes. roman shirokov's speculative pass caused confusion in the porto defence and hulk reacted quickest, nipping in to round helton and slot the ball into the empty net.
zenit improved markedly in the second half and were given the perfect opportunity to wrest the initiative on 52 minutes after the sliding nicolás otamendi blocked viktor fayzulin's cross with a raised hand. hulk stepped up to take the spot kick, yet helton guessed correctly, diving to his right and easily fielding the weak shot.
with just over 20 minutes to go, andrey arshavin replaced shirokov and the former russia captain made an immediate impression, rousing the crowd with a couple of excellent pieces of skill. the playmaker could have given his side the advantage with 17 minutes remaining, but his low left-foot effort was saved by helton after he had been put through by oleg shatov.
zenit, who host section leaders club atlético de madrid on matchday five, pushed for a winner with time running out. full-back cristian ansaldi almost provided it, yet his strike went narrowly the wrong side of the upright.
yardımcı hakemler: dag-roger nebben (nor), jan erik engan (nor)
4. hakem: sven erik midthjell (nor)
çizgi hakemleri: ken henry johnsen (nor), dag vidar hafsås (nor)
zenit: yuri lodygin (gk), cristian ansaldi, domenico criscito, nicolas lombaerts (c), hulk, danny (dk. 28 aleksandr kerzhakov), tomáš hubocan, roman shirokov (dk. 67 andrey arshavin), oleg shatov, viktor fayzulin, axel witsel (dk. 81 konstantin zyryanov)
yedekler: egor baburin (gk), luís neto, aleksandr anyukov, anatoliy tymoshchuk
teknik direktör: luciano spalletti (ita)
porto: helton (gk), danilo, lucho gonzález (c) (dk. 86 nabil ghilas), josué (dk. 76 licá), jackson martínez, silvestre varela, eliaquim mangala, fernando, alex sandro, nicolás otamendi, steven defour
yedekler: fabiano (gk), maicon, diego reyes, ricardo, mikel agu
brezilyalı yıldız hulk'un eski takımına karşı bir gol atıp bir de penaltı kaçırdığı maçta zenit, porto ile 1-1 berabere kaldı.
şampiyonlar ligi g grubu'nda zenit st petersburg, sahasında konuk ettiği porto ile 1-1 berabere kalarak ikinci sıradaki yerini korudu.
maçın ilk yarısında maça hızlı başlayan taraf porto oldu. 17. dakikada jackson martinez ile net bir fırsattan yararlanamayan konuk ekip, 23. dakikada aradığı golü buldu. sağ kanattan hareketlenen danilo'nun ortasında ceza sahası içinde kafa vuruşunu yapan lucho gonzalez fileleri havalandırdı: 0-1.
bu gole zenit'in yanıtı ise gecikmedi. 28'de sol kanattan organize gelien atakta shirokov'un pasında penaltı noktası üzerinde topu alan hulk, helton ve mangala'dan sıyrılarak boş kaleye topu gönderdi: 1-1. brezilyalı yıldız eski takımına attığı bu golün ardından sevinç gösterisinde bulunmadı.
ilk 45 dakikanın geri kalan bölümlerinde ise gol sesi çıkmadı ve takımlar soyunma odalarına 1-1'lik eşitlikle girdi.
ikinci yarıda da oyunun temposu oldukça yüksekti. 51. dakikada otamendi'nin ceza sahası içinde topa elle müdahele etmesinin ardından kazanılan penaltı atışında topun başına geçen hulk, yerden sol köşeye doğru etksiz bir vuruş yapında helton iki hamlede topun sahibi oldu.
geri kalan bölümlerde ise her iki takım da net fırsatlardan yararlanamayınca 90 dakika sonunda puanlar paylaşıldı: 1-1.
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