aboubakar rescues porto point against shakhtar published: wednesday 10 december 2014, 22.55cet fc porto 1-1 fc shakhtar donetsk vincent aboubakar's late rocket gave the hosts a point as group h's two qualified sides shared the spoils at the estádio do dragão.
• group winners porto earn point thanks to late vincent aboubakar rocket • taras stepanenko puts shakhtar ahead with bullet header • both sides guaranteed progress before kick-off • stepanenko picks up suspension; rúben neves carried off • round of 16 draw takes place in nyon at 12.00cet on 15 december
fc shakhtar donetsk held uefa champions league group h winners fc porto to a draw at the estádio do dragão as the section's two qualified sides could not be separated.
despite there being no qualification pressure on either team, chances had been at a premium until taras stepanenko's breakthrough in the 50th minute when he headed in a bernard corner. porto's much-changed lineup took time to click but bruno martins ındi nodded against the crossbar in the 71st minute and then vincent aboubakar had the dragons' fans roaring as he thrashed home an 87th-minute equaliser.
shakhtar coach mircea lucescu – without suspended uefa champions league top scorer luiz adriano – had predicted a good open game and olexandr gladkiy did have a terrific early opportunity for the pitmen yet was unable to make the connection at the far post that was required to turn the ball in. porto winger ricardo quaresma was lively, shooting straight at andriy pyatov on the half-hour and within seconds the goalkeeper was called upon again, diving to his right to save from adrián lópez.
porto were forced into a reshuffle when midfielder rúben neves went off with a knee injury. martins ındi came on and ıván marcano stepped up the pitch from centre-half. shakhtar captain for the night stepanenko picked up a costly booking just before the interval and will be suspended for the first leg of their round of 16 tie.
bernard had looked the most dangerous attacker on either side and he provided the assist from a corner as stepanenko partially redeemed his night, getting away from his marker and soaring to power in a commanding header which gave shakhtar the initiative. porto almost equalised immediately as aboubakar flashed a volley on the turn narrowly wide.
shakhtar carried the greater menace in wide areas and bernard slipped another fine pass to alex teixeira, his fellow brazilian, whose powerful strike was deflected over. martins ındi crashed a header against the crossbar from a ricardo centre entering the final 20 minutes, yet it seemed porto would be frustrated until aboubakar seized on a loose fernando touch and rifled in a shot from 25 metres that pyatov could only palm into the roof of the net.
