FC Porto came from behind to beat Moreirense 2-1 at the Estadio do Dragao on Friday, opening matchday five of Portugal's Primeira Liga with the club's fourth straight win of the season.
Dinis Pinto put Moreirense ahead in the 20th minute, finishing off a pass from Joao Veloso at the back post. It was the first goal Porto had conceded all season and the first time this campaign they had trailed in a match.
Porto needed 17 minutes to respond. In the 37th minute, Polish defender Bednarek headed in a precisely weighted free-kick cross from William Gomes to make it 1-1, giving goalkeeper Andre Ferreira no chance.
The turnaround was completed in the 58th minute. Midfielder Victor Froholdt won the ball in an advanced area and released Pepe, who squared the ball for fellow Brazilian William Gomes to score Porto's second.
Red Card and Stretcher Drama Late On
The match turned ugly in the closing minutes. In the 90th minute, Moreirense's Guilherme Liberato was sent off with a straight red card following a collision with Froholdt, who was left needing treatment on the pitch after a blow to the head and was carried off on a stretcher.
The incident left Moreirense with 10 men for the closing stages. Froholdt did not return, and he was replaced by Seko Fofana in the 91st minute, with Alberto Costa also making way for Nehuen Perez.
Moreirense also used the late stoppages to make changes, with Dinis Pinto's replacement, Leandro Santos, sent on as the match ran into a lengthy period of first-team changes and stoppages.
Chances at Both Ends
Porto had the better of the first half's early exchanges, with Pablo Rosario forcing saves from Andre Ferreira inside the opening ten minutes before Moreirense broke the deadlock against the run of play. Andre Silva also headed narrowly over from a Gabri Veiga corner before the interval.
Porto goalkeeper Diogo Costa was withdrawn at the hour mark for Joao Costa, one of a series of substitutions as Porto's coach freshened up his side, sending on Inbeom for Gabri Veiga and later Borja Sainz and Santiago Gimenez for William Gomes and Andre Silva.
Froholdt himself squandered a glaring chance in the 67th minute, unable to turn in an Alberto Costa cross from close range under pressure from Dinis Pinto, and was denied again by a marginal offside call in the 79th minute.
Moreirense also threatened in the second half, with Dinis Pinto forcing a strong save from Diogo Costa in the 85th minute before Porto's injury concerns and the late sending-off took over the closing stages.
Late Porto Pressure
Even after the red card, Moreirense held on for long stretches. Substitute Santiago Gimenez twice went close in stoppage time, first shooting wide with his left foot from outside the area and then being denied by Andre Ferreira after a Borja Sainz assist. Sainz himself also had a shot blocked in the box before the final whistle.
FC Porto are three-time European champions and one of Portuguese football's traditional "big three" clubs alongside Benfica and Sporting CP. The win at the Estadio do Dragao kept them with a perfect record after five rounds of the season.
