PORTO, Portugal (AP) — After Club Brugge scored yet another goal, veteran Porto defender Pepe pulled the jersey over his head in dismay amid boos from stunned fans echoing around the Estádio do Dragão.
Porto’s Champions League struggles continued with a 4-0 home loss to Club Brugge on Tuesday, with the Belgian side on top of Group B after its second consecutive win at the start of the European competition.
Bayer Leverkusen defeated Atlético Madrid 2-0 in the other group match.
Brugge scored once in the first half and three times in the second to hand Porto its fourth straight loss in the Champions League going back to last season. The Portuguese side, loudly jeered after the final whistle on Tuesday, is winless in five consecutive games in the European competition since beating AC Milan in October 2021.
Porto’s loss to Brugge followed a 2-1 defeat to Atlético last week where all three goals were scored in second-half stoppage time. It came after Porto had started the season with six straight victories in all competitions.
“It’s a tough one to take,” Porto forward Gonçalo Borges said. “It’s never normal to concede four goals. It was a complicated match but it was our obligation to do better in front of our fans.”
It was the second victory in a row in the Champions League for Brugge after it opened its European campaign by beating Leverkusen at home. The club equaled its biggest Champions League win and became the first Belgian side to start a group campaign with back-to-back triumphs.
It was only Brugge’s second win against Porto in five European matches between the teams, and first since the 1972 UEFA Cup.
Ferran Jutglà opened the scoring for the visitors by converting a 15th-minute penalty kick after he was brought down by João Mário in a breakaway. Kamal Sowah added to the lead from close range in the 47th, Andreas Skov Olsen scored the third from inside the area in the 52nd, and 17-year-old Antonio Nusa sealed the victory in a breakaway in the 89th in his Champions League debut.
“Everything just went our way in this game,” Sowah said. “It’s not finished yet. It doesn’t stop here, we have the next game coming. And suddenly everyone needs to watch out for us.”
Brugge, which hosts Atlético in the next round in October, nearly added another when Raphael Onyedika’s shot hit the post in the 86th.
Porto, which next hosts Leverkusen, had won its two matches against Brugge in the Champions League when the teams met in the group stage of the 2016-17 season.
Porto’s loss on Tuesday came despite the surprise return to the starting lineup of playmaker Otávio, who had injured his ribs in the match against Atlético.
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