Our under-23s were beaten in the final of the Premier League International Cup on Tuesday night, as Porto ran out 1-0 winners at Emirates Stadium.
We pushed for an equaliser right until the end, but an early goal from the Portuguese side set them on their way to retaining the trophy.
Porto were quick out the starting blocks and took the lead in the 10th minute, when Madi Queta dummied twice on the edge of the box before firing into the bottom corner.
Musa Yahaya then beat our offside trap and flicked the ball back across goal, but Danny Ballard was on hand to clear the danger.
We played with greater intensity after the interval, working a number of chances. Yassin Fortune tried his luck with a flicked effort, before Vlad Dragomir fired over from the edge of the box.
Ten minutes from time Romario Baro stormed down the left wing and delivered a looping cross-cum-shot that was destined for the back of the net, but Joao Virginia was quick to react to tip the ball over.
We flooded forward in the dying moments and it looked like we’d grabbed an equaliser when Emile Smith Rowe let rip from 20 yards but Mouhammed Mbaye produced a stunning save to secure the win for the visitors.
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