Liverpool reached the Champions League quarter-finals for the first time in nine years on Tuesday, with a 0-0 second leg draw at Anfield earning them a 5-0 aggregate win over Porto, and manager Juergen Klopp said the club were back where they belong.

The last time the five times European champions reached this stage of Europe&#39;s elite club competition was in 2009 when they went out to Chelsea in a dramatic 7-5 aggregate defeat.

&quot;It feels good to be honest, feels really good. I cannot feel like people who waited so long for it, but it feels good,&quot; said Klopp, who made clear that he expected more.

&quot;Last eight is cool. (But) we&#39;re not a little bit satisfied to be honest. I think it was time that we showed up again,&quot; he said.

Klopp, who took his previous club Borussia Dortmund to the Champions League final in 2012, losing to Bayern Munich, said reaching the last eight highlighted the progress at Anfield.

&quot;There is a good development in Liverpool at the moment, it is a nice moment, but if you don&rsquo;t show up in a competition like the Champions League then no-one realises it,&quot; he said.

&quot;So I am happy for all the people involved that we made that step. It&#39;s done, it&#39;s good and now let&#39;s go and carry on.&quot;

Klopp is in his third season at the Merseyside club and said this year&#39;s progress in Europe was about in line with his expectations for the team&#39;s improvement.

&quot;I never had a time schedule in my mind. I don&rsquo;t want to make it smaller than it is but, on the other hand, I don&rsquo;t want to make it bigger than it is.

&quot;This year we belong there to be honest, it should not be a big surprise and the next round will be very difficult, there are seven other very good teams involved, so maybe five or four are from England, it doesn&#39;t make it easier to be honest.

&quot;But I think we will have a chance for sure to go to the semis, that is of course the target. I think we are in time.&quot;

Porto manager Sergio Conceicao feels Liverpool, who last won the Champions League in 2005, have what it takes to go all the way again.

&quot;Liverpool are definitely one of the teams that can win this year, they are really strong and everyone knows that,&quot; said the former Portugal winger.

The last time the five times European champions reached this stage of Europe's elite club competition was in 2009 when they went out to Chelsea in a dramatic 7-5 aggregate defeat.

Liverpool reached the Champions League quarter-finals for the first time in nine years on Tuesday, with a 0-0 second leg draw at Anfield earning them a 5-0 aggregate win over Porto, and manager Juergen Klopp said the club were back where they belong. The last time the five times European champions reached this stage of Europe's elite club competition was in 2009 when they went out to Chelsea in a dramatic 7-5 aggregate defeat. "It feels good to be honest, feels really good. I cannot feel like people who waited so long for it, but it feels good," said Klopp, who made clear that he expected more. "Last eight is cool. (But) we're not a little bit satisfied to be honest. I think it was time that we showed up again," he said. Klopp, who took his previous club Borussia Dortmund to the Champions League final in 2012, losing to Bayern Munich, said reaching the last eight highlighted the progress at Anfield. "There is a good development in Liverpool at the moment, it is a nice moment, but if you don’t show up in a competition like the Champions League then no-one realises it," he said. "So I am happy for all the people involved that we made that step. It's done, it's good and now let's go and carry on." Klopp is in his third season at the Merseyside club and said this year's progress in Europe was about in line with his expectations for the team's improvement. "I never had a time schedule in my mind. I don’t want to make it smaller than it is but, on the other hand, I don’t want to make it bigger than it is. "This year we belong there to be honest, it should not be a big surprise and the next round will be very difficult, there are seven other very good teams involved, so maybe five or four are from England, it doesn't make it easier to be honest. "But I think we will have a chance for sure to go to the semis, that is of course the target. I think we are in time." Porto manager Sergio Conceicao feels Liverpool, who last won the Champions League in 2005, have what it takes to go all the way again. "Liverpool are definitely one of the teams that can win this year, they are really strong and everyone knows that," said the former Portugal winger.

Football: Liverpool are back where they belong, says Klopp after Champions League quarter-finals spot

A first-half penalty from Paulo Dybala helped fire Juventus into the Champions League quarter-finals on Tuesday after a 1-0 win sent the Serie A champions through 3-0 on aggregate.

Porto coach Nuno Espirito Santo had hailed Juve&#39;s 20-game unbeaten home run in Europe as he played down the Portuguese side&#39;s chances of overturning a 2-0 first leg defeat at the Estadio do Dragao.&nbsp;

And the 43-year-old was right not to talk up their chances.

Despite enjoying plenty of possession in a first half that saw the hosts squander a number of chances, their bid ended when right-back Maxi Pereira saw red after handling Gonzalo Higuain&#39;s goal-bound shot five minutes before the break.

Romanian referee Ovidiu Hategan pointed to the spot and Argentinian playmaker Dybala stepped up to drill into the bottom-right corner as Iker Casillas dived the other way.

Juventus stretched their unbeaten home record in Europe to 21 games -- the last time they suffered a home defeat in Europe was a 2-0 Champions League loss to Bayern Munich, in the quarter-finals, in April 2013.

However, Juve coach Massimiliano Allegri warned his side must improve, whoever they are drawn against in the last eight.

&quot;We&#39;ll need a different kind of performance when we come up against better sides,&quot; he said.

&quot;In the second half, with 11 against 10, we did the opposite of what we achieved in Oporto.&quot;

Juventus won 2-0 in Portugal thanks to goals from Marko Pjaca and Dani Alves after Alex Telles was sent off on 27 minutes.

Nuno lamented his side&#39;s failure to score a &quot;deserved&quot; goal, but said: &quot;The expulsions in both games changed everything for us, and when you&#39;re playing against a big side like Juventus it becomes difficult.

&quot;They&#39;re one of the top four or five sides in Europe.&quot;

Casillas record 
 
Allegri deployed an attack-minded 4-2-3-1 formation that saw Higuain lead the Turin giants&#39; attack.

But it was Dybala, whose only previous Champions League goal this campaign came in a 4-0 win at Dinamo Zagreb last September, who had the majority of the chances.

The Argentinian had spoken on Monday of his desire to add to his tally in Europe, but fired wide twice in the opening stages as the hosts set the tone.&nbsp;

At the other end, Brazilian Francisco Soares curled directly into Gianluigi Buffon&#39;s arms, but it was one of too few opportunities for the visitors.

Mario Mandzukic&#39;s header was smothered by Spanish goalkeeper Casillas, who was making a record 175th appearance in European competition.

The imposing Croatian forward went closer with a header whistling wide of the far post from a corner, before Pereira flew to save Higuain&#39;s shot with his hand after Alex Sandro&#39;s header was parried by Casillas.&nbsp;

That left the visitors a man down and Dybala made no mistake from the spot to claim his third goal in the competition.

&quot;I felt more pressure taking the penalty against AC Milan than tonight,&quot; said Dybala, who hit a crucial, last-gasp winner in a controversial 2-1 league defeat of Milan on Friday.

&quot;I&#39;m happy with the goal, but also with the win and the fact we&#39;re through.&quot;

Juve could have had a second goal just after the restart but Casillas produced a fine reflex save at his near post to stop a wayward header by Porto midfielder Danilo.

Minutes later Buffon rushed out to close down Soares after he escaped Sandro to fire an angled shot wide of the &#39;keeper&#39;s far post.

Allegri replaced Juan Cuadrado with Pjaca for the start of the second half and the Croatian starlet saw an angled effort spin past Casillas&#39;s far post after he controlled well under pressure on the edge of the area.&nbsp;

Higuain, on 66 minutes, then fired just wide after holding off two markers in the area in what was Juve&#39;s last real chance to add to their tally.

(AFP)

Juventus stretched their unbeaten home record in Europe to 21 games

A first-half penalty from Paulo Dybala helped fire Juventus into the Champions League quarter-finals on Tuesday after a 1-0 win sent the Serie A champions through 3-0 on aggregate. Porto coach Nuno Espirito Santo had hailed Juve's 20-game unbeaten home run in Europe as he played down the Portuguese side's chances of overturning a 2-0 first leg defeat at the Estadio do Dragao. And the 43-year-old was right not to talk up their chances. Despite enjoying plenty of possession in a first half that saw the hosts squander a number of chances, their bid ended when right-back Maxi Pereira saw red after handling Gonzalo Higuain's goal-bound shot five minutes before the break. Romanian referee Ovidiu Hategan pointed to the spot and Argentinian playmaker Dybala stepped up to drill into the bottom-right corner as Iker Casillas dived the other way. Juventus stretched their unbeaten home record in Europe to 21 games -- the last time they suffered a home defeat in Europe was a 2-0 Champions League loss to Bayern Munich, in the quarter-finals, in April 2013. However, Juve coach Massimiliano Allegri warned his side must improve, whoever they are drawn against in the last eight. "We'll need a different kind of performance when we come up against better sides," he said. "In the second half, with 11 against 10, we did the opposite of what we achieved in Oporto." Juventus won 2-0 in Portugal thanks to goals from Marko Pjaca and Dani Alves after Alex Telles was sent off on 27 minutes. Nuno lamented his side's failure to score a "deserved" goal, but said: "The expulsions in both games changed everything for us, and when you're playing against a big side like Juventus it becomes difficult. "They're one of the top four or five sides in Europe." Casillas record Allegri deployed an attack-minded 4-2-3-1 formation that saw Higuain lead the Turin giants' attack. But it was Dybala, whose only previous Champions League goal this campaign came in a 4-0 win at Dinamo Zagreb last September, who had the majority of the chances. The Argentinian had spoken on Monday of his desire to add to his tally in Europe, but fired wide twice in the opening stages as the hosts set the tone. At the other end, Brazilian Francisco Soares curled directly into Gianluigi Buffon's arms, but it was one of too few opportunities for the visitors. Mario Mandzukic's header was smothered by Spanish goalkeeper Casillas, who was making a record 175th appearance in European competition. The imposing Croatian forward went closer with a header whistling wide of the far post from a corner, before Pereira flew to save Higuain's shot with his hand after Alex Sandro's header was parried by Casillas. That left the visitors a man down and Dybala made no mistake from the spot to claim his third goal in the competition. "I felt more pressure taking the penalty against AC Milan than tonight," said Dybala, who hit a crucial, last-gasp winner in a controversial 2-1 league defeat of Milan on Friday. "I'm happy with the goal, but also with the win and the fact we're through." Juve could have had a second goal just after the restart but Casillas produced a fine reflex save at his near post to stop a wayward header by Porto midfielder Danilo. Minutes later Buffon rushed out to close down Soares after he escaped Sandro to fire an angled shot wide of the 'keeper's far post. Allegri replaced Juan Cuadrado with Pjaca for the start of the second half and the Croatian starlet saw an angled effort spin past Casillas's far post after he controlled well under pressure on the edge of the area. Higuain, on 66 minutes, then fired just wide after holding off two markers in the area in what was Juve's last real chance to add to their tally. (AFP)

Dybala fires Juventus past depleted Porto into Champions League quarter-finals

&nbsp;Juventus&nbsp;edged closer to the Champions League quarter-finals after second-half goals from substitutes Marko Pjaca and Dani Alves earned them a 2-0 away win at 10-man Porto in a one-sided last 16 first-leg tie on Wednesday.&nbsp;

Porto&#39;s downfall was partly self-inflicted after left back Alex Telles received a red card in the 27th minute following two senseless bookings in the space of 90 seconds, leaving the home side to play over an hour against the Serie A leaders with 10 men.

Despite holding&nbsp;Juventus&nbsp;at bay for 72 minutes, Porto&#39;s resolve was broken when Miguel Layun deflected Paulo Dybala&#39;s pass into the path of Pjaca who slammed a first-time effort past Iker Casillas.

Dani Alves made sure of victory two minutes later when he controlled Alex Sandro&#39;s cross with his chest before finishing calmly as&nbsp;Juventus, who are still in the Italian Cup, boosted their hopes of a maiden treble ahead of the second leg in Turin on March 14.&nbsp;

&quot;We can be happy as it&#39;s a really good result, but to be honest after the first-half red card, we had to win this game,&quot;&nbsp;Juventus&nbsp;midfielder Sami Khedira told BT Sport.&nbsp;

&quot;It&#39;s absolutely not over,&quot; he added. &quot;We&#39;re happy with tonight but in three weeks we&#39;ll need to be careful as Porto are angry and have nothing to lose.&quot;

Juventus&nbsp;were expected to face a stern test in Portugal, but while they imposed themselves from the early stages and controlled the first half, Porto were content to remain deep and absorb pressure.&nbsp;

The visitors struggled to forge the clear openings that their dominance deserved, although the lively Dybala fashioned the best chance of the first half with a thumping effort from outside the box which grazed the post.

Telles&#39;s minute and a half of madness quashed any lingering Porto ambition and prompted coach Nuno Espirito Santo to withdraw striker Andre Silva,&nbsp;scorer of four Champions League goals this season,in response.

Juve boss Massimiliano Allegri left out Leonardo Bonucci from the squad, after the pair&#39;s dispute during Friday&#39;s victory over Palermo, and while&nbsp;Juventus&nbsp;were untested at the back, they missed the centre back&#39;s creativity and probing long balls.

The breakthrough eventually came from the bench, as Allegri introduced Pjaca and Dani Alves to offer dynamism and directness and the pair repaid their manager with goals to end Porto&#39;s 20-game undefeated home streak.

(Reuters)

Porto's downfall was partly self-inflicted after left back Alex Telles received a red card in the 27th minute

Juventus edged closer to the Champions League quarter-finals after second-half goals from substitutes Marko Pjaca and Dani Alves earned them a 2-0 away win at 10-man Porto in a one-sided last 16 first-leg tie on Wednesday. Porto's downfall was partly self-inflicted after left back Alex Telles received a red card in the 27th minute following two senseless bookings in the space of 90 seconds, leaving the home side to play over an hour against the Serie A leaders with 10 men. Despite holding Juventus at bay for 72 minutes, Porto's resolve was broken when Miguel Layun deflected Paulo Dybala's pass into the path of Pjaca who slammed a first-time effort past Iker Casillas. Dani Alves made sure of victory two minutes later when he controlled Alex Sandro's cross with his chest before finishing calmly as Juventus, who are still in the Italian Cup, boosted their hopes of a maiden treble ahead of the second leg in Turin on March 14. "We can be happy as it's a really good result, but to be honest after the first-half red card, we had to win this game," Juventus midfielder Sami Khedira told BT Sport. "It's absolutely not over," he added. "We're happy with tonight but in three weeks we'll need to be careful as Porto are angry and have nothing to lose." Juventus were expected to face a stern test in Portugal, but while they imposed themselves from the early stages and controlled the first half, Porto were content to remain deep and absorb pressure. The visitors struggled to forge the clear openings that their dominance deserved, although the lively Dybala fashioned the best chance of the first half with a thumping effort from outside the box which grazed the post. Telles's minute and a half of madness quashed any lingering Porto ambition and prompted coach Nuno Espirito Santo to withdraw striker Andre Silva, scorer of four Champions League goals this season,in response. Juve boss Massimiliano Allegri left out Leonardo Bonucci from the squad, after the pair's dispute during Friday's victory over Palermo, and while Juventus were untested at the back, they missed the centre back's creativity and probing long balls. The breakthrough eventually came from the bench, as Allegri introduced Pjaca and Dani Alves to offer dynamism and directness and the pair repaid their manager with goals to end Porto's 20-game undefeated home streak. (Reuters)

Champions League: Juventus beat 10-man Porto 2-0

AS Roma suffered another European humiliation on Tuesday when they had two players sent off, lost 3-0 at home to Porto and missed out on the Champions League group stage. 
 
After drawing 1-1 in Portugal in the first leg of the playoff tie, Roma started as favourites but never recovered after Felipe gave the visitors an eighth-minute lead. 
 
They imploded completely when Daniele De Rossi and his replacement Emerson Palmieri were shown straight red cards either side of halftime. 
 
Monaco joined Porto when they beat Villarreal 1-0 after a late penalty by Fabinho sealed a 3-1 aggregate win, and Legia Warsaw, Celtic and Ludogorets Razgrad also qualified, although none of them won on the night. 
 
Ten-man Legia drew 1-1 at home with Irish part-timers Dundalk, but progressed 3-1 on aggregate to become the first Polish side to reach the group stage of Europe&#39;s premier club competition for 20 years. 
 
Former European champions Celtic squeezed past Hapoel Beer Sheva 5-4 on aggregate despite a 2-0 loss in Israel and Ludogorets held Viktoria Plzen 2-2 away to secure a 4-2 aggregate win. 
 
Roma became the third successive Serie A team, and the sixth in the last eight seasons, to lose in the playoff round, leaving Italy with only two representatives - Juventus and Napoli - in Thursday&#39;s group-stage draw. 
 
Roma have had their fair share of recent European disasters after losing 6-1 to Barcelona last season and 7-1 at home to Bayern Munich two years ago, but not even they could not have imagined how Tuesday&#39;s game would unfold. 
 
Their initial confidence was shattered when Felipe headed Porto in front from Otavio&#39;s cross but the real trouble began in the 39th minute when midfielder De Rossi was sent off for a high tackle on Maxi Pereira. 
 
Amid angry Roma protests, he was replaced by Palmieri who lasted only 11 minutes before he was dismissed for a shocking lunge. 
 
Roma goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny booked his place in rogue&#39;s gallery with a reckless charge out of his goal which allowed Miguel Layun to slot Porto&#39;s second into an empty net. 
 
Almost immediately, Jesus Corona turned his marker inside out before scoring the third. 
 
Dundalk, beaten 2-0 at home, made a brave effort in Poland and went ahead when Robert Benson thundered home an unstoppable volley in the 19th minute. 
 
The Irish side were given further hope when Legia&#39;s Adam Hlousek was sent off in the 67th minute, but they were caught on the break as Michal Kucharczyk levelled in stoppage time, ending their dream. 
 
(Reuters)

Roma suffered another European humiliation when they had two players sent off

AS Roma suffered another European humiliation on Tuesday when they had two players sent off, lost 3-0 at home to Porto and missed out on the Champions League group stage. After drawing 1-1 in Portugal in the first leg of the playoff tie, Roma started as favourites but never recovered after Felipe gave the visitors an eighth-minute lead. They imploded completely when Daniele De Rossi and his replacement Emerson Palmieri were shown straight red cards either side of halftime. Monaco joined Porto when they beat Villarreal 1-0 after a late penalty by Fabinho sealed a 3-1 aggregate win, and Legia Warsaw, Celtic and Ludogorets Razgrad also qualified, although none of them won on the night. Ten-man Legia drew 1-1 at home with Irish part-timers Dundalk, but progressed 3-1 on aggregate to become the first Polish side to reach the group stage of Europe's premier club competition for 20 years. Former European champions Celtic squeezed past Hapoel Beer Sheva 5-4 on aggregate despite a 2-0 loss in Israel and Ludogorets held Viktoria Plzen 2-2 away to secure a 4-2 aggregate win. Roma became the third successive Serie A team, and the sixth in the last eight seasons, to lose in the playoff round, leaving Italy with only two representatives - Juventus and Napoli - in Thursday's group-stage draw. Roma have had their fair share of recent European disasters after losing 6-1 to Barcelona last season and 7-1 at home to Bayern Munich two years ago, but not even they could not have imagined how Tuesday's game would unfold. Their initial confidence was shattered when Felipe headed Porto in front from Otavio's cross but the real trouble began in the 39th minute when midfielder De Rossi was sent off for a high tackle on Maxi Pereira. Amid angry Roma protests, he was replaced by Palmieri who lasted only 11 minutes before he was dismissed for a shocking lunge. Roma goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny booked his place in rogue's gallery with a reckless charge out of his goal which allowed Miguel Layun to slot Porto's second into an empty net. Almost immediately, Jesus Corona turned his marker inside out before scoring the third. Dundalk, beaten 2-0 at home, made a brave effort in Poland and went ahead when Robert Benson thundered home an unstoppable volley in the 19th minute. The Irish side were given further hope when Legia's Adam Hlousek was sent off in the 67th minute, but they were caught on the break as Michal Kucharczyk levelled in stoppage time, ending their dream. (Reuters)

Champions League: Roma loses 0-3 to Porto, miss group stage

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