Lopetegui wary of Maccabi having point to prove

Porto coach Julen Lopetegui expects to face a fired-up Maccabi Tel-Aviv when his side look to secure qualification to the Champions League knockout stages.

The Group G leaders retained their unbeaten record in the competition with a routine 2-0 win last time out against Maccabi, who remain without a point to their name.

Slavisa Jokanovic’s men were buoyed by a 1-0 victory over local rivals Hapoel Tel-Aviv at the weekend and Lopetegui was keen to remind his players that they are facing potentially dangerous opponents.

“Maccabi are at home and they will be a different team with motivation and a will to their win first points in the group,” he said on Tuesday. 

“Now my main concern is qualifying to the next round in the Champions League and tomorrow can be a big step towards this objective. 

“We have big respect for Maccabi Tel-Aviv, they are a good team with good players and a lot of fans here. We will have to be at our best.”