Porto train at Anfield as Iker Casillas and Co get ready to face Liverpool in Champions League quarter-final
- Liverpool host Porto in Tuesday in a Champions League quarter-final first leg
- On the eve of the match, Porto’s players, including Pepe, trained at Anfield
- Goalkeeper Iker Casillas and Pepe have 272 international caps between them
- Pepe trained at Anfield but he will not play on Tuesday night as he is suspended
Porto’s players were put through their paces in a training session at Anfield on Monday ahead of their midweek clash with Liverpool.
Their two-legged Champions League quarter-final tie begins on Merseyside on Tuesday, with the return match taking place in Portugal eight days later.
Liverpool are big favourites to prevail and reach the last four, where either Barcelona or Manchester United await.
Anfield hosted a Porto training session on the eve of Tuesday night’s Champions League game
Porto will begin the two-legged quarter-final as major underdogs against last year’s finalists
Defender Alex Telles (right) and fellow Brazilian Fernando shared a joke during the session
Porto’s players, dressed in purple training kid, gathered for a team meeting on the pitch
But Porto have plenty of experience among their travelling party, with goalkeeper Iker Casillas and centre back Pepe boasting 272 senior international caps between them.
Spaniard Casillas and Portuguese Pepe trained at Anfield on Monday but the latter will not feature in Sergio Conceicao’s starting XI on Tuesday as he is suspended. Pepe has come to England to support his team-mates.
Casillas kept a clean sheet at Anfield last season when Porto played out a 0-0 draw in the round of 16, although that result was rendered fairly meaningless after Liverpool had won the first leg 5-0 in Portugal.
Pepe’s last visit to Anfield came in 2014 when he and Casillas were team-mates at Real Madrid who cruised to a 3-0 victory.
But both men have also tasted defeat away to Liverpool. In 2009 they were part of a Real side thrashed 4-0 at Anfield thanks to goals by Fernando Torres, Andrea Dossena and two from Steven Gerrard.
Porto goalkeeper Iker Casillas (right) has kept clean sheets on his last two visits to Liverpool
Casillas led the way as he and his team-mates did some light exercise on Liverpool’s turf
Defender Pepe (left) has plenty of experience but he will not play in Tuesday’s first leg
Porto coach Sergio Conceicao watched on with folded arms as his team trained on Monday