United's Porto call

The Azuis e brancos celebrate their own 125^th anniversary during the 2018/19 campaign – just as Newcastle did midway through the season gone by.

Robson took charge of Porto in January 1994, just a month after his sacking by another of the country’s heavyweights, Sporting Lisbon. It was a challenging situation he inherited at the Estádio das Antas – the club’s traditional home, where gates had dropped to as low as 10,000. Porto sat a long way adrift of the Primeira Divisão’s leading pack upon Robson’s arrival, but he still managed to secure an impressive second-place finish as well as a piece of silverware in the Taça de Portugal – where, in sweet fashion, he masterminded an extra-time victory over former employers Sporting in the final.

The following season – his first full one at the helm – he guided the Azuis e brancos to the title, losing just once along the way. With a young José Mourinho working alongside him in an interpreting role, Robson was becoming hugely popular among the fanbase, a point illustrated in his autobiography – Farewell but not Goodbye – in which he wrote, “We won so many games 5-0 that I became known to the locals as ‘Bobby Five-O’.”

He sat out the opening part of the 1995/96 campaign after undergoing treatment for a malignant melanoma. Porto did not wilt in his absence, though, and he returned to steer his side over the finishing line and secure a second successive domestic crown. That summer, he left to join Barcelona, where further success would not be long in coming.

ALL THE FUN OF THE FAIRS...

Where head-to-head action is concerned, United and Porto have come across each other twice before.

Both of those meetings came during the 1969/70 Inter-Cities Fairs Cup, when the two were paired together in the last 32.

Newcastle – who were, of course, the competition’s holders – had got the better of Dundee United in the First Round, while Porto saw off Danish outfit Hvidovre IF. The first leg took place at the Estádio das Antas, where Magpies boss Joe Harvey opted for a more cautious approach. An Azuis e brancos side boasting a string of players who had played for Portugal at the 1966 World Cup in England were on the front foot throughout, but the United backline – marshalled by Bob Moncur – stood firm to record a 0-0 draw.

A week later, the Magpies were given a helping hand by Mother Nature, with the surface at St. James’ Park covered by a blanket of snow. They adapted to the conditions far better than the visitors, and took the lead midway through the first half through Scottish winger Jim Scott. Though an equaliser would have seen Porto progress on away goals, it was United who continued to look the more dangerous in the final third, with Scott and Pop Robson both coming close in the second half. A single strike was to prove enough, though, as Newcastle – wearing an all-red strip on the night to avoid a clash with their opponents’ blue and white – set up a Third Round double-header against fellow English side Southampton.

THEN COMES MARIĆ…

Though Newcastle have had plenty of experience of Portuguese opposition since then – playing both Marítimo and Benfica during their 2012/13 Europa League campaign – they have yet to take on Porto at first-team level again.

The Azuis e brancos’ “B” side were visitors to St. James’ Park as recently as April, though, narrowly beating United’s Under-23s in the last four of the Premier League International Cup.

And, in Christian Atsu, the Magpies currently possess one player who has sampled life at the Estádio do Dragão first-hand. The Ghanaian started his career with Porto and made nearly 30 appearances for the club before moving to Chelsea, from whom he joined Newcastle on a permanent basis last year.

Atsu isn’t the only player to have turned out in both black and white and blue and white. Croatian Silvio Marić arrived at St. James’ Park for a £3.6M fee midway through the 1998/99 campaign, linking up from Dinamo Zagreb in his homeland. The attacking midfielder had played his part in Croatia’s run to the semi-finals of the World Cup in France the previous summer, but was never able to make much of an impact on Tyneside. He did find the net twice – home and away against FC Zürich in the UEFA Cup – but was restricted to less than 20 starts all told and it wasn’t a huge surprise when he was sold to Porto in July 2000.

THE DRAGONS ROAR AGAIN...

After four trophyless years, Porto reclaimed the Primeira Divisão title last time out.

Managed by former national team winger Sérgio Conceição, they lost just twice in 34 outings, while they also made it to the last 16 of the Champions League, where they were knocked out by Liverpool.

Big names include legendary Spanish ‘keeper Iker Casillas, livewire Algerian wide-man Yacine Brahimi, and Cameroonian frontman Vincent Aboubakar – last season’s top scorer. The Azuis e brancos boast a strong Latin American contingent, with Mexican duo Héctor Herrera and Jesús Corona providing the bullets for the likes of Aboubakar to fire, and Uruguayan Maxi Pereira an experienced option in defence.