Porto vs Liverpool: Casillas believes in the miracle

A 2-0 first leg defeat at Anfield against Liverpool isn't enough for Porto to stop believing that they can progress in the Champions League.

The Portuguese side have seen examples in this season's knockout rounds that they can hope to follow as they seek to overturn the deficit and reach the semi-finals.

"I'm 100 percent optimistic," said goalkeeper Iker Casillas. "Seeing the results of this season's knockout stages shows that we can't give up.

"We're going to fight to be in the semi-finals."

If Porto do want to progress to take on Barcelona in the final four, they need a miracle that goes beyond Casillas. Keeping a clean sheet is one thing, but they will need to score at least two goals at the Estadio Do Dragao.

"There's no greater motivation than completing a historic comeback against a team like Liverpool," said Sergio Conceicao, as Casillas' attitude appears to have spread.

"At times, they've seemed to me to be the best team in the world. But we're also a great team and I'm confident we can achieve a good result."

As it stands, though, it's more likely that the Reds will take on Barcelona in the semi-finals, but Jurgen Klopp isn't taking his eye off the ball.

"Conceicao has said that we're the best in the world," Klopp acknowledged. "Sometimes we're very good, and I hope we can prove that again.

"It's a big compliment but we have hard work left to do. The match is still very open."