Pepe, a defender for FC Porto, disclosed that the team’s goal in their Champions League matchup on Tuesday was to “neutralize” Martin Odegaard, the captain of Arsenal.
Leandro Trossard’s goal at the Emirates Stadium in the first half of the second leg tied the tie on aggregate after Porto won the first leg 1-0.
After 120 minutes, a penalty shootout was required because the two teams were unable to distinguish themselves.
David Raya helped the Gunners advance to the quarterfinals by saving two spot kicks.
After the game, Pepe acknowledged that they made an attempt to thwart Odegaard, who set up Trossard’s goal.
He told DAZN: “We don’t forget that Arsenal are a great team, in the Premier League they score a lot of goals.
“We came to play our game, neutralising Odegaard’s play between the lines. We knew what we were doing, but unfortunately we couldn’t score. They had a bit of luck.”
