Club Brugge-Benfica is a Champions League round of 16 first leg match to be played on Wednesday at 21:00: TV, line-ups, predictions.
With all those who will probably turn up their noses at this unusual Champions League round of 16 match – perhaps preferring to see a challenge between more famous teams at this stage of the continental competition – instead, Club Brugge and Benfica, two outsiders who, against all odds, have made it through the group stage, will be competing for a place in the quarter-finals. And they did so at the expense of important clubs.
It is truly unbelievable what the Lusitanians, who were already able to finish in the top eight in Europe last year, have managed to do. The German Roger Schmidt’s red and white team, who were considered doomed in a prohibitive group with PSG and Juventus, came first, even ahead of the highly favoured Parisians, earning them a more affordable eighth on paper. Four wins, two draws and no defeats, scoring a total of 16 goals in six matches. Only Napoli, Bayern Munich and Liverpool have scored more than Benfica. Max Allegri’s Juventus, who were beaten by the Portuguese both in the first leg and in the return, conceding a total of six goals, knows something about this. Schmidt is at the helm of a perfect machine, which nevertheless lost one of its most valuable pieces in the January market. We are talking about the young midfielder Enzo Fernandez, who moved to Chelsea in the Premier League for more than 120 million euros after his sumptuous performances during the World Cup in Qatar in the Albiceleste jersey of Argentina.
Fight between outsiders
Benfica who, in addition to their European exploits, continue to travel fast in the Primeira Liga. At the top of the Portuguese top league is currently Schimdt’s team, which after twenty matches has five more points than rivals Porto and six over Braga.
Noa Lang
The latter gave the only disappointment of 2023 to Joao Mario and his team-mates, a week ago eliminated (on penalties) from the Taça de Portugal, the national cup, by Fiorentina’s next opponent in the Conference League. Braga had also been indigestible when the league resumed last December. And it is so far the only team that can say it beat the Águias in the Primeira Liga. Club Brugge, on the other hand, is not going through a great moment: the autumn splendour seems distant today, when the Nerazzurri finished second in a group with Porto, Bayer Leverkusen and Atletico Madrid. A lot has changed since then, starting with the coach: in place of the exonerated Hoefkens, there is the Englishman Scott Parker, former coach of Fulham and Bournemouth. But there is no sign of a change of pace: the Belgians have won only one of their last six matches, showing a fragility that is in contrast with the excellent defensive phase (only four goals conceded) admired in the group stage.
Club Brugge-Benfica: latest line-up news
Parker will opt for an attacking 4-3-3 formation, and in Club Brugge’s trident is the former great of this challenge: Ukrainian centre-forward Yaremchuk, who last year wore the Lisbon club’s shirt. He will be supported by Lang and Buchanan, although the latter remains in doubt, as do his teammates Jutglà and Skov Olsen. Vanaken, captain and irreplaceable pawn of the Nerazzurri, will find space in midfield.
On the other side, Schimdt can count on most of the starters, with the exception of midfielder Rafa Silva, who is still unavailable. The German coach’s main doubt remains in attack, where only one of Guedes and Ramos will find a place. In the midfield it was Chiquinho who took the place of the departing Enzo Fernandez. And so far he has not disappointed.
The prediction
Benfica seem not to have been particularly affected by Fernandez’s departure and are the clear favourites in this first leg. A lot has changed at Club Brugge since last autumn, and these changes – first and foremost that of the coach – lend a touch of unpredictability to this otherwise already written challenge. The Lusitanians should be able to score between two and four goals, heading into the quarter-finals.
Club Brugge-Benfica’s likely line-up
- CLUB BRUGGE (4-3-3): Mignolet; Mata, Hendry, Mechele, Meijer; Rits, Onyedika, Vanaken; Buchanan, Yaremchuk, Lang.
- BENFICA (4-2-3-1): Vlachodimos; Bah, António Silva, Otamendi, Grimaldo; Chiquinho, Florentino; João Mário, David Neres, Aursnes; Gonçalo Guedes.
POSSIBLE RESULT: 1-2
