Pre-Season Report | Porto 4-0 Cardiff City
The Bluebirds put in a strong performance against Champions League opposition, but Porto's ability in front of goal saw them record a four-goal win.
Erol Bulut will have been pleased with the way his side set-up for much of the encounter, but the clinical nature of the Portuguese giants shone through with Toni Martinez (2), Taremi and Fran Navarro hitting the net.
The Bluebirds started the game brightly, and put Porto under intense pressure early on. Karlan Grant, Callum Robinson and Ryan Wintle all saw efforts go just wide inside the opening 15 minutes.
Sadly, after 16 minutes, the Bluebirds found themselves behind. Toni Martinez took Porto's first opportunity, with the ball initially blocked, but the forward struck home the rebound.
City almost levelled eight minutes later. Sheyi Ojo rounded Diogo Costa, but his goal bound effort was cleared off the line by Zaidu.
The Bluebirds lost captain Joe Ralls to injury after 30 minutes but they continued their positive approach. Ojo once again proving his attacking capabilities, this time with a cut inside from the right and a left-footed shot at goal, that Costa just tipped over.
Just before the interval, Porto had a controversial second. Mark McGuinness was taken down off the ball, but it wasn't caught by the VAR, with Martinez found in space after a short back pass. He slotted in to double their advantage going in at the break.
City welcomed Aaron Ramsey out for the second half, with our No.10 replacing Callum Robinson for the final 45 minutes. It was Ramsey's first pre-season outing since rejoining the Club earlier this month.
It was nearly the perfect return for Rambo, as he struck at goal within a minute of coming on, but it bounced off the post.
The Bluebirds were punished again within minutes of going close. This time, an adjudged handball gave the Dragons a chance from the penalty spot. Taremi made no mistake from 12-yards.
As always with pre-season matches, a number of changes occurred, with the Bluebirds and their opponents giving many of their squad minutes on the pitch. Another short back pass hurt City late on as Fran Navarro scored a fourth goal for Porto.
Kieron Evans' powerful strike was tipped away late on as City looked for a deserved goal, but it wasn't to be.
The Bluebirds will now complete their pre-season campaign back in the UK, taking on Wycombe Wanderers in Joe Jacobson's testimonial match next weekend.
Cardiff City: Allsop, Ng (Romeo, 66'), Goutas (Simpson, 73'), McGuinness (Benjamin, 73'), O'Dowda, Ralls (Adams, 30'), Wintle (Rinomhota 73'), Grant (Evans, 66'), Robinson (Ramsey, 45'), Ojo (Colwill, 73'), Ugbo (Etete, 73'). Subs Not Used: Luthra, Bagan, Tanner.
