Benfica volition look to support their cleanable commencement to the 2026-27 Europa League league signifier run erstwhile they invited Lech Poznan to the Estadio da Luz connected Thursday evening.
Marco Silva's broadside beryllium apical of the 36-team table with 9 points from 3 matches, portion the Polish champions are down successful 32nd spot with conscionable 1 point, leaving Niels Frederiksen's men with a hard task against 1 of the competition's aboriginal pace-setters.
Match preview
Benfica person made an awesome commencement to the league-phase campaign, winning their opening 3 Europa League matches against AC Milan (2-0), Celtic (4-1) and Omonia (4-1) successful their astir caller continental outing.
Those results person near the Lisbon outfit astatine the apical of the Europa League standings arsenic 1 of conscionable 5 teams to person won each 3 of their opening fixtures, portion their 10 goals besides marque them the competition's highest-scoring side.
Silva's men person been successful fantabulous signifier crossed each competitions, winning 14 of their past 15 matches, with their lone decision coming against Porto successful the league Classico connected September 20, earlier responding with six consecutive victories.
Although past weekend's 1-0 location occurrence implicit Alverca - secured by Vangelis Pavlidis' 51st-minute punishment - was the lone lucifer successful that winning tally successful which Benfica failed to people much than once, it besides marked their archetypal cleanable expanse successful 5 outings and kept them 2nd successful the Primeira Liga table, 5 points disconnected the summit.
Benfica volition present crook their attraction backmost to Europe, wherever different triumph would fortify their presumption successful the contention for automatic qualification to the knockout stages, and they tin gully assurance from a location grounds of 9 wins successful 10 matches (D1) this season.
That includes victories successful each 4 of their Europa League fixtures astatine Da Luz crossed the qualifying rounds and league phase, scoring astatine slightest 3 goals successful each and uncovering the nett 18 times portion conceding conscionable three.
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© Imago
Lech, meanwhile, get successful Lisbon with a acold little convincing European grounds aft suffering 4-0 defeats to Crystal Palace and Bayer Leverkusen, though they did assertion their archetypal constituent of the league signifier successful a 1-1 location gully against Sunderland successful their astir caller continental outing, with Leo Bengtsson scoring a 70th-minute equaliser.
Having conceded 9 goals successful the league phase, the Kolejorz person the joint-second-worst antiaircraft grounds successful the competition, with lone bottom-placed Ararat-Armenia shipping more, portion nary broadside successful the contention has recovered the nett less times than the Polish champions’s 1 onslaught successful the contention this term.
Frederiksen's squad person endured an inconsistent tally crossed each competitions successful caller weeks, winning 4 of their 7 matches since returning from the October planetary break, a play that besides saw them eliminated from the Polish Cup to lower-division Siarka Tarnobrzeg.
Lech’s home signifier has been acold much encouraging, though, with past weekend's 3-1 triumph implicit Wisla Krakow marking their 5th consecutive league win, leaving the Kolejorz 3 points wide astatine the apical of the Ekstraklasa table aft collecting 31 points from a imaginable 36 this season.
However, the Poznan-based nine look a overmuch tougher trial connected Thursday, having mislaid some of their erstwhile meetings with Benfica successful the 2020-21 Europa League radical stage, suffering a 4-2 decision astatine location earlier falling 4-0 astatine the Estadio da Luz.
Benfica Europa League form:
Benfica signifier (all competitions):
Lech Poznan Europa League form:
Lech Poznan signifier (all competitions):
Team News
Benfica are expected to beryllium without Leandro Barreiro, who faces astir 2 months connected the sidelines with a thigh injury, portion Enzo Barrenechea remains doubtful arsenic helium continues to retrieve from a genu problem.
Dodi Lukebakio was forced disconnected during the 2nd fractional of past weekend's triumph implicit Alverca, though reports suggest the contented is not serious, portion Rafa Silva remains successful contention to instrumentality to the starting lineup connected the close broadside of the attack.
Pavlidis has scored successful each of his past 4 appearances for Benfica and besides recovered the nett successful some of his starts successful this season's Europa League league phase, making the Greek striker 1 to watch.
Lech volition decidedly beryllium without Ali Gholizadeh, who is recovering from an ACL injury, Joao Moutinho, who has a breached foot, and Alex Douglas, who is sidelined with an ankle problem.
Meanwhile, Wojciech Monka and Mikael Ishak are inactive nursing musculus problems, portion Allahyar Sayyadmanesh is moving his mode backmost from a hamstring problem.
Benfica imaginable starting lineup:
Trubin; Bah, Araujo, Lenglet, Dahl; Palhinha, Aursnes; Rafa Silva, Sudakov, Prestianni; Pavlidis
Lech Poznan imaginable starting lineup:
Lis; Pereira, Skrzypczak, Yegbe, Gurgul; Kozubal, Murawski; Walemark, Rodriguez, Hakans; Bengtsson
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We say: Benfica 4-1 Lech Poznan
The quality successful prime betwixt the 2 sides has been reflected successful their respective European campaigns, and Benfica's awesome attacking signifier makes them beardown favourites to assertion different victory.
The Portuguese broadside person besides been peculiarly hard to incorporate astatine the Estadio da Luz this season, and they should person capable to unafraid a comfy win.
For information investigation of the astir apt results, scorelines and much for this lucifer delight click here.
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