Mora’s Clinical Finish Gives Porto Narrow First-Leg Advantage Over Stuttgart

Key Takeaways:

• Rodrigo Mora netted his second goal in consecutive European appearances last night during Porto’s 2-1 victory against VfB Stuttgart
• Porto broke a three-match away winless streak in the UEFA Europa League with this result at the MHPArena
• Stuttgart’s only goal came from Deniz Undav, but the German side have now recorded just one win in their last five fixtures across all competitions

First Half: Porto Edge an Open Contest

Despite Porto’s eventual triumph, it was Stuttgart who initially seized the initiative. Ermedin Demirovic sought to reproduce his scoring form from last weekend’s outing against Mainz, attempting an ambitious overhead kick which, however, sailed over the crossbar. Moments later, Bilal El Khannouss went even closer, seeing his free-kick glide just past the upright, before Jamie Leweling tested Diogo Costa from range to signal Stuttgart’s attacking intent.

At the other end, William Gomes came agonisingly close to scoring, only for the ball to rattle the crossbar and deny him double figures for the season. Porto, undeterred by this end-to-end passage of play, soon claimed the lead. Terem Moffi combined incisively with Borja Sainz before firing past an unsighted Alexander Nubel. Nubel’s reflexes would shortly deny Moffi a rapid second, but Porto did double their lead before the break when Rodrigo Mora calmly finished from a Zaidu Sanusi cross.

Triunfo em Estugarda 💙

⚽️ Terem Moffi e Rodrigo Mora#VFBFCP #SeguimosJuntos pic.twitter.com/xfotlNIgro

— FC Porto (@FCPorto) March 12, 2026

Stuttgart Respond but Porto Hold Firm

Stuttgart, unwilling to be outdone, halved the deficit before the interval. Deniz Undav proved decisive, outmuscling Thiago Silva and slotting the ball into the far corner to reinvigorate home hopes. However, Porto remained unfazed in the aftermath, searching for a third after the restart. Zaidu, provider in the first half, nearly turned scorer, but his close-range header lacked the necessary power to bypass Nubel.

Porto’s substitute Pepe added further threat, cutting inside and narrowly missing the target with a driven effort. The hosts appeared to equalise when Angelo Stiller bundled the ball in following a set-piece routine, but his effort was ruled out. Late in the contest, Chris Fuhrich forced another alert save from Costa, but Stuttgart ultimately could not overturn the deficit before the final whistle.

Statistical Overview and European Context

This victory in Stuttgart represents Porto’s first win on the road in the UEFA Europa League after three unsuccessful attempts. Impressively, the Portuguese side have now recorded four consecutive European victories away in Germany. Stuttgart, on the other hand, have managed just a single win in their previous five outings in all competitions (two draws, two defeats). With a 2-1 advantage heading into the second leg, Porto are well positioned as favourites to progress and potentially add a third UEFA Europa League title to their honours.