Portuguese police to give Arsenal fans ‘extra security’ ahead of heated UCL game against Porto

From Diogo Costa's 'taunt' to police protection to angry Ultras, the Round of 16 clash between Arsenal and Porto has it all!

Portuguese police to give Arsenal fans ‘extra security’ ahead of heated UCL game against Porto

Arsenal supporters will receive police security ahead of the game vs Porto (Via X/@Football__Tweet & MarkBelter)

The UEFA Champions League enters its business end as the Round of 16 gets underway. English side Arsenal make the trip to a more than ‘hostile’ environment, in the Estadio do Dragao. While Arsenal and their supporters make the trip to Porto, security forces will be on high alert. Tensions between the Porto Ultras and Andre Villas-Boas have reached to such an extent that police have decided to offer protection to the traveling Arsenal supporters!

Football in Portugal is a passionate affair. From electrifying environments to flares, flags, and furious supporters, the league has it all. A quick look at the game between Inter Milan and Porto last season and the chaos that ensued depicts just how charged the home crowd can be at times. That being said, the Gunners make their visit to Porto on the backdrop of a ‘complicated’ Presidential election contested between Jorge Nuno Pinto da Costa & Andre Villas-Boas.

It is understood that the Public Security Policy will deploy officers from across five different units, including the criminal investigations division. The police will closely surveil areas of fan accommodation as well. The police have already confiscated 87 tickets belonging to members of the Super Dragoes (Porto Ultras) ahead of the clash. While a regular fixture will see one or two officers make the trip with the club, there are ten officials with the Arsenal camp this time around.

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Porto keeper Diogo Costa has BIG words ahead of Champions League clash

As if the red-hot atmosphere and charged environment weren’t enough to make Porto vs Arsenal an existing clash, Porto keeper Diogo Costa has ‘challenged’ the Gunners ahead of the game. The Portuguese shot-stopper felt confident ahead of the match-up and boldly announced that his side would give it their all to stop them.

Diogo Costa and Mikel Arteta
Diogo Costa does not feel ‘intimidated’ by a strong Arsenal side (Via X/@eurofootcom & HaytersTV)

Speaking at a press conference ahead of the game, Costa said:

Of course, they (Arsenal) have weak points, and I'm not gonna tell what we're gonna do. We'll do our best to win the game.

Adding more spice to his claim, the goalkeeper dismissed a reporter’s question if Arsenal were the tournament favorites. Costa did not hop on the question, but rather, replied calmly that the Gunners have to ‘prove’ that they are, in fact, the favorites.

Mikel Arteta on the other hand, seemed relatively relaxed ahead of the tie. Answering a reporter’s question on whether his players were feeling tense, he replied that theirs is a club used to facing the likes of Lionel Messi and Bayern Munich (in the UCL). He dismissed the club and his players as having a ‘mental block’ or psychological issue in the Champions League. If anything, fans can expect a Bukayo Saka goal after Rio Ferdinand labelled the star as ‘not’ world class.

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