FC Porto stayed in the game through the first half in Germany, but Fuchse Berlin pulled away after the break and won 40-32 in the third round of Group A in the Champions League. Porto were level at 13-13 at half-time, then cut the deficit to 22-21 early in the second half before the hosts moved to 27-22 and kept going. It was Porto's second defeat in three group games.
The second-half swing
The key spell came straight after the restart. Porto came out with intensity and briefly had the margin down to one, but their attacking efficiency dropped and they could not take advantage of numerical superiority situations. Fuchse Berlin used that opening to build the five-goal gap at 27-22, and Porto never really got back within touching distance after that.
The result leaves Porto on two points in third place, four behind the Germans and two behind Veszprém. That is a poor return for a side that has won 7 of 7 in the Primeira Liga, and it shows how different the margin for error is at this level.
Gidsel's scoring edge
Mathias Gidsel was the standout individual, finishing with 17 goals. Porto's leading scorer was Antonio Martínez with six, a gap that tells you how hard the visitors found it to keep up once the game opened up.
João Gomes also featured in the match for Porto. The return fixture is next Thursday at 19h45 at Dragão Arena, with Porto needing a much cleaner second half if they want to turn this group around.
Written by Sam Whitfield with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 1 outlet. How we work →
