The first leg of the 2014-15 UEFA Champions League quarterfinals continued Wednesday, with a big upset stealing the spotlight.
German powerhouse Bayern Munich, winner of five Champions League titles, kicked off its quest for No. 6 against FC Porto. Meanwhile, Spanish titan Barcelona continued its mission to get back into the semifinals by taking on Paris Saint-Germain.
Here’s how it all went down.
Porto 3, Bayern Munich 1
PORTO, Portugal — Two goals from Ricardo Quaresma in the first 10 minutes helped FC Porto to a surprise 3-1 win over Bayern Munich in the first leg of their Champions League quarterfinal on Wednesday.
Bayern, a five-time European champion but currently hit by injuries, paid for its defensive blunders as it struggled to dominate a Portuguese side which is unbeaten in the competition.
Thiago Alcantara pulled one back for Bayern in the 28th minute, but Jackson Martinez restored Porto’s two-goal advantage ahead of the return leg in Germany next week.
“We are facing one of the strongest Bayern teams in history,” said Porto’s Spanish coach Julen Lopetegui, who is in his first Champions League campaign. “The hardest part will be in Munich.”
Though Porto takes a two-goal advantage to Munich, in the return leg it will be without suspended defenders Danilo and Alex Sandro.
Porto has won the European title twice but is in the quarterfinal stage for only the first time since 2004, when it won the title under former coach Jose Mourinho.
Porto is dreaming of a repeat of the 1987 Champions League final, when it memorably upset Bayern with a 2-1 comeback win.
Barcelona 3, PSG 1
PARIS — Lionel Messi set up Neymar’s opener and Luis Suarez scored twice with fine solo runs to give Barcelona a 3-1 victory against a struggling Paris Saint-Germain on Wednesday that left the four-time champion with one foot in the Champions League semifinals.
After Neymar slotted home in the 18th minute, Suarez ducked and weaved through the Paris defense, putting the ball through the legs of David Luiz, for his first goal in the 67th.
He ghosted past the PSG defender again 12 minutes later to score his second.
PSG pulled a goal back in the 82nd when Gregory van der Wiel’s long-range effort deflected off Barcelona’s Jeremy Mathieu.
“When we play like that, it’s tough to beat us,” Barcelona coach Luis Enrique said. “3-0 would have been perfect.”
“We are not going to make the error of thinking that this is over,” he added.
Still, PSG’s first European home defeat in 34 games leaves it with a seemingly impossible task when it travels to Barcelona for the return leg next Tuesday.
Barcelona failed to make the semifinals last season but looks almost certain to this time after this first win in France against a French team since 2001 and a controlled performance on a balmy Paris night that exposed a gulf between the two sides.
Thumbnail photo via Paulo Duarte/Associated Press
