In a gritty, leave-it-all-on-the-court display, FC Porto looked poised to secure one of their biggest wins in the EHF Champions League Men. But Barça, the reigning champions, mounted an impressive comeback to salvage a point after the game ended in a 33:33 draw.

GROUP B
FC Porto (POR) vs Barça (ESP) 33:33 (17:14)

• Porto’s plan to start the halves flawlessly worked wonders: the Portuguese side opened the first half with a 3:0 run and began the second half with a 4:0 run
• but Barça had their own 6:1 run, which served as the springboard for their comeback
• Croatian left back Ivan Sliskovic had one of his best games in the EHF Champions League Men, scoring seven goals for Porto, only two shy of his personal best, set for Celje in November 2014 against Vardar
• Barça right wing Aleix Gómez had his best outing in Europe's premier competition, scoring 11 times
• this was the seventh time that Gómez had scored at least 10 goals in a European match
• this is Barça’s first draw in the EHF Champions League Men since November 2017, when they drew 27:27 at home versus Rhein-Neckar Löwen

Barça show warrior-like mentality

A packed Pavilhao Dragao Arena witnessed one of the most exciting games of the season. Porto flirted with one of the most important wins in their history and led by seven goals, 23:16, in the 39th minute, but Barça’s superior experience and depth was the key as they fought back to earn point.

Barça improved their shooting efficiency to 63 per cent in the second half, but a quiet evening from French right back Dika Mem, who only scored twice, did not help. Instead, Aleix Gómez scored 11 goals, a third of Barça’s total, and the Spanish side are now second in group B.