Inter Milan 1-0 Porto - Late Romelu Lukaku strike puts Porto on the back foot in the Champions League

Porto have a deficit to overturn after suffering a 1-0 defeat against Inter Milan in the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 first leg.

The Dragons went close in the 57th minute and were holding their own at a jam-packed San Siro before Otávio was sent off for a second booking in the 78th minute.

Sérgio Conceição tried to shut up shop but Romelu Lukaku had other ideas, the substitute volleying home after his initial header hit the post.

The stage is set for an intriguing second leg battle at Estádio Do Dragão on 14 March.

All Inter

It was all Inter Milan in the opening stages, João Mário blocking Federico Dimarco’s shot and Lautaro Martínez heading Dimarco’s cross over the bar.

Nicolò Barella tried his luck from distance before Diogo Costa saved Hakan Çalhanoğlu’s powerful effort from distance.

Grujić gets Porto going

Porto fashioned their first attempt in the 27th minute after some nice interplay resulted in Marko Grujić unable to keep his shot down.

The Dragons were getting a foothold in the game, Grujić forcing a save from André Onana with Galeno heading the follow up wide.

Fouls were flying in from all angles and it was only a matter of time before referee Srđan Jovanović started to dish out yellow cards.

Otávio brain explosion

That moment came in the 41st minute after Matteo Darmian clashed with Galeno and went down looking for a penalty.

Otávio played on after Inter kicked the ball out of play, instigating a brawl which saw him booked alongside Dimarco.

Chances at both ends

Inter went close to going into the break 1-0 up, Diogo Costa producing a sharp save after Alessandro Bastoni met Dimarco’s free kick at the near post.

The second half started with Mateus Uribe swinging a shot over the bar before Galeno went down injured, the winger unable to continue and replaced by Evanilson.

It was end to end action with Barella dragged his shot wide and Mehdi Taremi unable to get enough power on his shot after being sent through by Pepê Aquino.

Onana to the rescue

Porto maintained the pressure and created three rapid fire chances in the 57th minute after João Mário skipped past Dimarco.

Zaidu Sanusi’s shot was blocked by Škriniar, the left-back's follow-up saved on the line by Onana before the goalkeeper denied Taremi.

Simone Inzaghi had seen enough, bringing on Robin Gosens and Romelu Lukaku for Dimarco and Edin Džeko.

Inter back on top

The atmosphere was intensifying as Barella volleyed over the bar, Inzaghi making another change with Henrikh Mkhitaryan replaced by Marcelo Brozović.

Martínez went desperately close to getting onto the end of Lukaku’s cross with Inter coming home strong, I Nerazzurri buoyed by a fanatical home crowd.

Otávio pays the price

The match took a big turn in the 78th minute when Çalhanoğlu skipped infield to find space for a shot, Otávio taking the bait and sent off after receiving his second yellow card.

Inzaghi brought on Denzel Dumfries for Škriniar, Sérgio Conceição’s intentions clear when he introduced Wendell for Taremi. It didn’t work with his team conceding three minutes later.

Lukaku to the rescue

Lukaku headed Barella’s cross against the post, the ball bouncing straight back to the Belgian striker who volleyed the follow up into the net.

Costa saved a fierce strike from Lukaku to prevent the tie getting out of hand, the Dragons with three weeks to wait before trying to overturn the deficit at Estádio Do Dragão.

Unhappy homecoming for Conceição

Sérgio Conceição returned to his former club well aware of the power a full San Siro can unleash.

Porto held their own against a superior side, Conceição's former Lazio teammate Simone Inzaghi able to bring Robin Gosens, Denzel Dumfries, Marcelo Brozović and Romelu Lukaku off the bench. 

It could have been a different story had Porto converted one of their three chances in the 57th minute, but that’s football.

Mateus Uribe, Otávio and Galeno returned from injury to provide a big boost, but in the end Galeno had minimal impact and lasted only 51 minutes, Otávio walking a tightrope after a needless booking in the first half and paying the price with his late dismissal.

It’s far from over, the Dragons well and truly in the tie with their supporters sure to fire up and play their part in Portugal.

By Matthew Marshall at San Siro