Sofyan Amrabat
Not many people would have recognised Sofyan Amrabat before the tournament, in fact, it was likely that more people would have remembered Sofyan’s older brother Nordin, who turned out for Watford in the Premier League in the 2015/16 season. Nonetheless, the 26-year-old ended the tournament in most people’s teams of the tournament, as well as collecting accolades such as ‘the new Kanté’, having won possession 57 times – the most by any African player since the 1966 World Cup. Alongside his Moroccan teammate Azzedine Ounahi, Amrabat excelled in Qatar and significantly contributed to Morocco becoming the first-ever African side to reach the semi-finals of a World Cup.
Even before the tournament, there were some rumours linking Amrabat with a move away from Fiorentina, but the 2022 World Cup only added fuel to the fire, with some of the biggest clubs in the world now battling for the midfielder’s signature. If the latest rumours are to be believed, Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur seem to be in a direct battle for the Moroccan, but Newcastle United, Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, and Sevilla are also linked. According to Gazzetta dello Sport, Fiorentina are only willing to let Amrabat go for at least €40m – with Liverpool only recently spending close to that for Cody Gakpo, does this give Tottenham an advantage in the race for the Atlas Lion?
Jude Bellingham
England midfielder Jude Bellingham was by no means an unknown entity before this winter’s World Cup, after already becoming one of the best young players in the world following his €25m move from Birmingham City to Borussia Dortmund as a 17-year-old in 2020. However, this was perhaps the 19-year-old’s statement tournament, becoming a crucial member of the Three Lions’ midfield in Qatar. The Birmingham native had not scored for his national side ahead of the tournament, but in England’s opener against Iran, it was Bellingham who notched the first goal of the tournament for the Three Lions, also adding an assist for Jordan Henderson in the round of 16 tie against Senegal. At 19, Bellingham became one of the most important pieces of the England team, having finished first in shot-creating chances, tackles won, blocks, and dribbles completed out of the entire squad.
The Borussia Dortmund man’s stock has only risen after the 2022 World Cup, with the usual suspects, such as Real Madrid and PSG, linked with a move for the England star, but it seems more likely that the 19-year-old midfielder will head back to England, with Liverpool and Manchester City set to go head-to-head for his signature. Manchester City have already snapped up his good pal Haaland last summer, with City perhaps the more logical option for Bellingham, however, according to reports in England, Jude’s father is trying to convince his son to choose Liverpool instead. Only time will tell whether Bellingham will listen to his father or become his own man in 2023. gon
Enzo Fernández
Joško Gvardiol
Alexis Mac Allister
Dominik Livaković
Azzedine Ounahi
The Champions League gets back underway this week following the international break with several sides in desperate need of victories to spark their European campaign into life.
Group A
Napoli will travel to Amsterdam looking to maintain their perfect start against an Ajax side smarting from their late defeat against Liverpool. The Italians have arguably been the standout side in the competition so far and can take a giant leap towards qualification with a victory in the Dutch capital.
Elsewhere it will be a first ever meeting of Liverpool and Rangers at Anfield with both sides needing wins for different reasons. Liverpool will look to Europe to gain some form after stuttering in the league while Rangers are yet to get off the mark in their return to the top table.
Group B
Club Brugge have arguably been the biggest surprise package in the tournament so far and will look to claim another scalp when they host Atletico Madrid.
The Belgians have made a perfect start and another victory would open a big gap between themselves and third place in the group.
Porto will be aiming to get off the mark after two defeats in their first two games when they host Bayer Leverkusen. The Germans are struggling domestically but did defeat Atletico last time out so they’ll have some belief travelling to Portugal.
Group C
Bayern Munich have once more made an impressive start to a Champions League group stage and will get the action underway on Tuesday when they host Viktoria Plzen in the early kickoff.
The German champions defeated their two biggest group rivals in September and will be expecting to dispatch of their Czech visitors to maintain their lead in the group.
Inter Milan meanwhile will host Barcelona in what is the biggest game of the week.
Both sides came up short when facing Bayern and both defeated Plzen so they’ll view these two upcoming games as the key to deciding who will follow Julien Nagelsmann’s side into the last 16.
Group D
Sporting are another side who have impressed, taking six points in what looked the most open group on paper.
They travel to Marseille on Tuesday who desperately need a win if they are to stand any hope of reaching the next round. The French side have started well in the league but have struggled badly in Europe in recent years and will be desperate to give the home support something to cheer.
Tottenham will visit Eintracht Frankfurt in the other Group D clash looking to bounce back from their weekend defeat to bitter rivals Arsenal and take steps towards qualification. It will be far from easy against the Europa League winners who will also have their sights on the latter stages.
Group E
AC Milan head what has been a very tight and unpredictable Group E and will host Chelsea on Wednesday night with injuries to key players disrupting their preparation.
French pair Mike Maignan and Theo Hernandez will miss the clash against Graham Potter’s men who needs points themselves having stuttered in their opening two games.
Salzburg are unbeaten thus far but have also yet to win but a victory over Dinamo Zagreb at home would put them in good stead heading into the turn in the group. The Croatians will be aiming for another surprise victory having stunned Chelsea last month.
Group F
Holders Real Madrid have made a serene start to their title defence and host Shakhtar on Wednesday looking to maintain their 100% record.
The visitors have also made a good start to the group and look favourites to join their hosts in the next round.
Celtic will travel to Leipzig looking to build on their credible draw against Shakhtar last time out and will need to get something to keep their qualification hopes alive as will the bottom side from East Germany.
Group G
Erling Haaland has been in utterly sensational form this season with 17 goals so far and the visit of FC Copenhagen will offer the Norwegian another chance to add to his tally.
The Danes picked up a draw against Sevilla three weeks ago but will be up against a Manchester City side brimming with confidence after sticking six goals past their local rivals Manchester United.
Sevilla have made a terrible start in La Liga and need to get something at home to Borussia Dortmund to avoid being cut adrift in terms of qualification. Victory for the Germans will see them move five points clear of their hosts with just three games to play.
Group H
Benfica have been another surprise outfit this season, winning nine of ten games in all competitions and two 100% records will go head to head in this group when they host PSG.
The Lisbon side claimed a stunning victory away at Juventus last time out and even a point here at home to the French champions will boost their chances of repeating what they did last year when they knocked Barcelona out in the group stages.
Juventus will be looking to avoid the same fate as the Spaniards and nothing less than three points against Maccabi Haifa in Turin will do, with manager Max Allegri under all sorts of pressure.
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Liverpool may have reached the Champions League semi-finals with a 6-4 aggregate win over S.L. Benfica, but manager Jurgen Klopp says that he takes responsibility for their fragility in Wednesday night’s 3-3 second leg draw against the Portuguese side.
The Reds had led 1-0 and 3-1 at Anfield with little more than 25 minutes remaining, though conceded to both Roman Yaremchuk and Darwin Nunez in the closing stages. Visitors Benfica also saw two goals ruled out for offside on the night with Liverpool far from their best throughout.
Speaking in his press conference having guided the club to a third UCL semi-final in his near seven-year tenure, German boss Klopp didn’t shy away from the blame.
“When you defend in the Champions League quarter-finals, it’s about the details,” said Klopp.
“It’s part of defending to put the opponent [into an] offside [position] and tonight it didn’t work out too well but that’s my fault because I made seven changes.
“The last line have never played together like this. When we lost the ball, our protection was obviously not perfect. We missed the boys of the last line, the voice of the last line – Virgil [Van Dijk].
“I know that we will talk about the game, the goals we conceded, and all of these things, but the day when I’m not over the moon about qualifying for the Champions League semi-finals is when something’s really wrong. Maybe then it would be the right time to quit.
“I never take something like this for granted, I’m really really happy.”
When Brazilian forward Roberto Firmino volleyed home his second of the evening in front of the Kop to put Liverpool 6-2 up on aggregate, most inside Anfield – and probably beyond – could not foresee Benfica’s comeback.
The Portuguese side – struggling in their own league this season – could have snatched it at the death too, denied yet again by the offside flag with almost the last kick of the game.
Klopp praised Nelson Verissimo’s side and admitted he was no different to anybody else in terms of the thinking with a two-goal lead on the night.
He said: “We are human beings, we think ‘Okay, job done!’ and Benfica were still on fire, I respect that a lot. They scored really good goals, but it should not be that easy against us.
“Everyone, me included, thought [at 3-1] that’s it. Benfica thought let’s give it a try and I couldn’t respect that more.
“They deserved the three goals, that’s just how it is. Of course, we could have scored more, that’s clear. I know about challenges in football games which you face constantly and tonight it was after 3-1.”
Albeit with an off-colour performance, now that Klopp’s side have secured their place in the last four of the Champions League, their hunt for an unprecedented quadruple is still very much alive and kicking.
The train now rolls onto its next destination for the red half of Merseyside, stopping off at Wembley this Saturday for an FA Cup semi-final against Manchester City. The Citizens also qualified for the semis of the Champions League after beating Spanish side Atletico Madrid.
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Liverpool’s 3-3 Champions League draw against S.L. Benfica at Anfield was by no means one of the Reds’ best performances, but it was enough to see them through into the semi-finals and tick off some landmark numbers at the same time.
Jurgen Klopp’s side won 6-4 on aggregate having brought a 3-1 lead back with them from Portugal in the first leg to reach the last four of the competition for the third time in his near seven-year tenure.
Since the competition’s re-brand in 1992, the Merseyside club have now played 160 Champions League games. Regardless of the result on Wednesday night, that was always going to be the case.
However, what wasn’t for sure was whether Liverpool would make it 150 Champions League goals at Anfield. Going into the meeting with the Eagles, Klopp’s side needed to score two for that to happen and of course, they got three, so the landmark number was reached.
Roberto Firmino’s poke home in the 55th minute took the accolade of 150, the first of the Brazilian’s brace, and he has teammate Diogo Jota to thank for writing his name into a small piece of Liverpool history with the little striker skewing a shot of his own which fell into Firmino’s path.
It was Benfica’s second-ever trip to Anfield in the Champions League, and having won 2-0 in March 2006, their unbeaten record in the competition at Liverpool’s home remains after they came from 3-1 down to finish level on the night.
Goals from Roman Yaremchuk and Darwin Nunez, on 73 and 82 minutes respectively, denied the hosts their 50thChampions League home victory. When Villarreal come to town in the semi-final first leg on April 26, Klopp’s side will again chase that tally.
Instead, the number of Champions League draws at Anfield has now ticked up to 15, with the record in full reading as below.
Played: 78, Won: 49, Drawn: 15, Lost: 14
Numbers aside, Liverpool know for sure that their quadruple hunt is still on this season, and to be honest, if they go onto achieve it, that’ll be the only figure that matters to all in the red half of Merseyside.
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Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool continued their hunt for an unprecedented quadruple, progressing into the Champions League semi-finals with a 6-4 aggregate win over S.L. Benfica despite a nervy second leg which ended 3-3 at Anfield.
Winning the Carabao Cup already this year, the Reds have an FA Cup semi-final against Manchester City to come this weekend and are also in a battle with the Citizens for the Premier League title.
Heading into their second leg against Portuguese side Benfica, Klopp’s side held a 3-1 lead and by the end of the action-packed 90 minutes, it is a good job that they did as that two-goal advantage saw them through to the last four, setting up a double-header against Spaniards Villareal.
In the first of many disallowed goals on the night, Diogo Jota saw a header ruled out early on for a push on his marker in the Benfica box while Nelson Verissimo’s men showed defensive frailties when goalkeeper Odisseas Vlachodimos flapped at Luis Diaz’s low cross.
As he had done in last week’s away leg, Ibrahima Konate headed home the opener, while last week’s Benfica goalscorer Darwin Nunez was denied an instant response at the other end by the offside flag.
Diaz and Roberto Firmino both went close for the hosts in front of an atmospheric away end before Goncalo Ramos scored in front of the Kop at the other end to send the travelling supporters wild.
The equaliser had to be confirmed by VAR, not the last time that would be said, with the ball falling to Ramos in what looked to be an offside position until it was discovered that Liverpool’s James Milner had got the last touch on the ball to bring the forward back into play.
Naby Keita fired over for the hosts before Alejandro Grimaldo made a superb block with Diaz ready to tap into an empty net from Firmino’s ball across the area.
1-1 at the break, and after a quiet start to the second half, Liverpool pounced on some terrible defending to nudge ahead on 55 minutes. Firmino the scorer after Jota had skewed a shot following errors from both Vlachodimos and Ex-Tottenham Hotspur defender Jan Vertonghen.
Credit – Stephen Gormley (Red Eye Photo Agency)
Brazilian Firmino added a third ten minutes later, UEFA’s eventual Man of the Match Kostas Tsimikas curling an inch-perfect free-kick into the box which the striker couldn’t miss when he connected with it.
From there on though, Klopp’s side became a shell of what we have all come to know them as. There were attacks forward from the Reds, but it was the Eagles from Portugal who finished stronger without a doubt.
On as a half-time substitute, Roman Yaremchuk rounded Alisson to pull one back with little under 20 minutes remaining though VAR had to intervene after the offside flag had been initially raised.
Firmino chased his hat-trick with a shot that was blocked, though Benfica striker Nunez was the next to get on the scoresheet, as he had done at the Estadio de Luz in the first leg.
Having seen one ruled out in the first half, the Uruguayan again dinked over Alisson and saw the offside flag go up with eight minutes remaining but this time, VAR would be the saviour for him and, again, gave the goal.
Now level on the night, the visitors went straight on the attack from the restart and will consider themselves unlucky not to have added another with Nunez’s volley at goal. Only Alisson’s fine save down to his right kept it out, and that felt a huge moment in the context of the tie.
With virtually the last kick of the game, Verissimo’s team had yet another one ruled out for offside, VAR not changing that decision, but by then the tie was won by Liverpool.
The Reds face Spaniards Villarreal in the last four, and their quadruple hunt rolls on.
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Anfield has provided so many magical moments in Europe, so many cult heroes, and so much success. Now, Liverpool must go again to finish the job in the second leg of their UEFA Champions League quarter-final with S.L. Benfica the visitors.
Jürgen Klopp’s side hold a 3-1 advantage from last week’s first leg in Portugal, with Ibrahima Konaté and Sadio Mané both on target in the opening 45 minutes at the Estádio da Luz.
Some nerves may have been jangling when Benfica’s Darwin Nunez scored early in the second half to halve the deficit, though a late goal from Colombian forward Luis Diaz has taken some of the pressure off Klopp’s side ahead of Wednesday night.
Still very much in the hunt for an unprecedented quadruple sat second in the Premier League, Liverpool drew 2-2 at table toppers Manchester City last weekend and will again play the Citizens this weekend coming, though that one comes in the FA Cup semi-final at Wembley.
Benfica meanwhile are historically the most successful Portuguese club ever, though have struggled desperately this season and have only their faint Champions League hopes to cling onto in terms of silverware.
Third in the Primeira Liga and trailing the top two by some distance, the Eagles look set to enter the UCL next season in its qualifying stages unless they go onto win the competition this term. Nélson Veríssimo’s side also lost the League Cup final to Sporting Lisbon in January in what has been a poor campaign on the whole.
A Look at the Numbers
Six-time winners of the competition, Wednesday night’s fixture will be Liverpool’s 160th Champions League game since the competition re-branded in 1992.
Of the 159 so far, 77 have been at Anfield with many memorable occasions within that figure. The Reds could claim a 50th home UCL victory with success against the Eagles while a draw or a defeat would take the tally to 15 in either of those columns.
And given their unquestionable goalscoring threat, Klopp’s side are more than capable of reaching 150 Champions League goals at Anfield with only two needed to reach another milestone.
Two-time competition winners Benfica stand in the way of those landmark numbers, a club who have only ever made one visit to Anfield in the Champions League though a successful one.
Back in March 2006, the Portuguese outfit stunned the red half of Merseyside with a 2-0 victory in the round of 16 as Liverpool were dumped out of a competition they had won the year before.
Liverpool did win on Benfica’s most recent visit however (April 2010) in the quarter-finals of the Europa League. Fernando Torres’ brace contributed to a 4-1 win though El Niño’s former club Atletico Madrid went onto knock the Reds out at the last-four stage on away goals.
Road to Paris
Winners of group B with a 100%-winning record, Liverpool then saw off Inter Milan over two legs in the round of 16 with a 2-1 aggregate victory despite losing 1-0 at Anfield.
Goals in the first leg at the San Siro from Roberto Firmino and Mohamed Salah were enough to set up the last-eight tie against Benfica.
Veríssimo’s side meanwhile finished second in group E, pipping Barcelona to qualification after beating the Spaniards 3-0 at home and earning a vital 0-0 draw at the Nou Camp.
Also known as the Reds in their native country, Benfica then saw off Ajax in the round of 16. After an enthralling 2-2 draw at home in the first leg, a hard-fought 1-0 win away in the Netherlands saw them progress.
Both they and Liverpool already know that qualification on Wednesday night will bring a winnable looking semi-final showdown against Spanish outfit Villareal, who defeated German giants Bayern Munich 2-1 on aggregate following last night’s 1-1 draw at the Allianz Arena.
The final of the competition will then take place on May 28 at the Stade de France in Paris.
Coverage
Prost International reporter Ben Olawumi will cover all the action live from Anfield in the quarter-final second leg with an 8:00pm kick-off scheduled. You can follow him on Twitter – @OlawumiJourno
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The Champions League quarter-finals got underway this week with Karim Benzema grabbing a hat-trick to put Real Madrid in the driving seat in their tie with holders Chelsea.
Elsewhere Liverpool have one foot in the semi-finals after beating Benfica while Manchester City and Villarreal edged out Atletico Madrid and Villarreal respectively.
Manchester City 1-0 Atletico Madrid
This fixture was a clash of styles as the possession-heavy approach of Pep Guardiola came up against the defensively resolute Diego Simeone and his gladiatorial approach to winning.
The game played out as expected with Atletico camped in and allowing City to have control of the ball and play in front of the Spaniards. In turn, Atletico had hoped to catch City on the break but no decent opportunities truly presented themselves.
The Citizens huffed and puffed for the majority of the first hour with Jan Oblak only troubled sporadically before Kevin De Bruyne scored what proved to be the game’s winning goal, finishing confidently after being found in the box by Phil Foden.
City were unable to add a second but will take a lead to Spain and know that at some point, Atletico will have to come out and attack, which should open up space on the counter.
Simeone will not be devastated by the result as the tie is still very much alive. A greater attacking threat will be required next Wednesday however if Atleti are to spring a surprise.
Benfica 1-3 Liverpool
Liverpool look well placed to continue their pursuit of an unprecedented quadruple after claiming a two-goal victory in Lisbon.
The Reds started on the front foot and played with an intensity that their Portuguese counterparts were struggling to match.
It was therefore no surprise when Jurgen Klopp’s side went ahead. Ibrahima Konate powered home his first goal for the club to set the Merseysiders on their way.
Sadio Mane would double the lead in the first after a wonderful ball from Trent Alexander-Arnold picked out Luis Diaz, who remained composed to head across to Mane to tap into the empty net.
Mohamed Salah and Naby Keita both had further opportunities as Liverpool looked to win the tie in one leg but Benfica goalkeeper Odysseas Vlachodimos performed admirably to keep it at two.
Benfica were afforded a lifeline early in the second half when Darwin Nunez pounced on a Konate error to calmly slot home and ramp up the atmosphere in the Estadio Da Luz.
Liverpool lost their way a bit and struggled to hold on to the ball as the hosts pressed but Diaz inflicted a damaging blow late on as Naby Keita’s deflected through ball found the former Porto man who rounded Vlachodimos to restore the two-goal cushion.
The Reds are now firm favourites to advance to the final four with Benfica needing a huge performance at Anfield.
Chelsea 1-3 Real Madrid
In what was the most eye-catching tie of the round on paper, Karim Benzema lit up the midweek action with a hat-trick for the second Champions League game in a row as Real Madrid left Chelsea on the brink of elimination.
Benzema was on form from the off. A brilliant backheel allowed Federico Valverde to play the ball into Vinicius Junior, who smacked the crossbar with his effort.
If this was a warning for Thomas Tuchel’s side, they did not heed it. In the 21st minute, Benzema played a lovely one-two with Vinicius who clipped the ball back for the onrushing Frenchman to score a glorious header past Edouard Mendy.
La Liga’s top scorer would repeat the trick just minutes later, finding space in the area to head Luka Modric’s cross into the bottom corner. It was such a difficult chance to convert but Benzema is operating on another level at the minute.
Chelsea did manage to get back into the game just before half-time with Kai Havertz powering a header past Thibaut Courtois to halve the deficit.
Any hopes that the goal may inspire a rousing comeback were dissipated almost instantly in the second as a mistake from Mendy was not dealt with at all well by Antonio Rudiger allowing Benzema the simple task of rolling it into an empty net from 25 yards.
After the difficulty of the opening two goals, the striker will have been surprised yet delighted at just how easy the third presented itself.
Chelsea tried to get back into the game with substitute Romelu Lukaku spurning a glorious chance by heading wide from six yards and Courtois saving brilliantly to deny Cesar Azpilicueta.
Carlo Ancelotti’s side did enough to hold on and look well placed to bring Chelsea’s tenure as European champions to an end, with Tuchel declaring the tie over in his post-match press conference.
Villarreal 1-0 Bayern Munich
This was the surprise result of the round, without question. Villarreal are relative novices at this level, with this being their first quarter-final in 13 years.
This did not stop the Yellow Submarines from producing a display full of energy and confidence to give themselves a slender advantage heading into next week’s second leg in Germany.
Former Bournemouth winger Arnaut Danjuma struck the only goal of the game in the eighth minute, diverting Dani Parejo’s effort past Manuel Neuer in the Bayern goal.
In what was an entertaining game with chances at either end, it will be the Spaniards who feel they left possibly a victory by a greater margin behind in this once.
Gerard Moreno almost scored from 45 yards out with Neuer stranded but his effort curled wide while Danjuma and Pedraza both spurned great chances to add to the worries for Julian Nagelsmann.
Francis Coquelin also saw his cross loop over Neuer and into the net only for VAR to catch the former Arsenal midfielder offside.
Bayern had chances too with Kingsley Coman twice going close but Nagelsmann will be relieved that the deficit is only one with a home return leg to come.
Bayern have done this before in losing or drawing first legs, only to smash the opposition once the action gets to the Allianz Arena.
Villarreal will be hoping to buck the trend and add another former winner to the list of clubs they have vanquished this season.
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It took a while for Arsenal to really kick into action against their Portuguese opponents, with Mikel Arteta’s men having to settle for a disappointing 1-1 draw.
The first half was largely dominated by Arsenal, with the away side coasting through the first half an hour without any trouble.
The first big chance of the game fell to Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, who is no stranger to missing big chances in the knockout stages of this tournament.
The forward was unfortunate enough to miss a huge chance to put the London club through from close range in last year’s competition, as the Gunners were knocked out of the Europa League by Olympiakos on away goals.
The guilt-edged chance came to Aubameyang in the 19th minute as Hector Bellerin slid the ball through to the striker at the back post.
With the goal gaping in front of him, the striker managed to miss the target from only five yards out, as he watched his shot narrowly miss the goal in a situation that looked easier to score than to miss.
The first goal of the game came just after the break from out of nowhere. As Arsenal failed to clear their lines, a cross was whipped in which was blocked by the arm of Emile Smith Rowe in the box with the referee awarding the penalty.
Benfica captain and Europa League top goalscorer this season Pizzi calmly slotted the penalty beyond Bernd Leno into the bottom right of the goal, with the goalkeeper guessing the right way but just failing to prevent the Portuguese side from opening the scoring.
The goal seemed to click Arsenal into gear as it only took two minutes for the visitors to equalise the tie through starlet Bukayo Saka.
A swift, traditional Arsenal counter-attack led to a beautiful low Cedric Soares cross that found the youngster in the box who was never going to miss from close range as he tapped the ball in to level the score.
Arsenal fans will be delighted to see Martin Odegaard able to play 90 minutes for the first time, as he was replaced in added time by Willian.
The Norwegian was a bright spark throughout the game and played varied passes to be admired, most notably a defence-splitting ball leading to the Arsenal goal.
Arteta will be disappointed that his side couldn’t push on for a winner and a second away goal in the game, as they continued to dominate both chances and possession. The 1-1 draw makes for a fascinating second leg to the matchup as Arsenal ‘host’ Benfica in Athens for the second match in a week’s time.
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]]>It all starts again with Portimonense facing Gil Vicente in Tuesday’s earlier kick-off, before Famalicão host leaders Porto – at Gil Vicente’s ground, due to the hygiene protocols.
Benfica welcome Tondela to Lisbon on Wednesday, followed by Guimarães and Sporting CP facing off in the game of the round.
Title Race
Benfica boss Bruno Lage (left) and Porto manager Sérgio Conceição (credit: record.pt)
The fight for the Portuguese league title is as close as it gets across major European leagues and the added factor of the unusual circumstances mean it really is impossible to call.
After 24 matchdays – ten remaining – only a single point separates the top two of Porto and Benfica, on 60 and 59 points respectively.
The pair have won the last 17 titles between them (10-7 in Porto’s favour) and last faced off at the Estádio do Dragão in February.
An own goal from the visitors proved decisive as hosts Porto secured a thrilling 3-2 victory, in a match that contained just the ten yellow cards.
It completed a double, after they also triumphed 2-0 at Benfica’s Estádio da Luz back in August.
Teams tied on points in Portugal are split by their head to head record at the end of the season, so this could be crucial.
Porto
Alex Telles (credit: Daily Mail)
The giants from northern Portugal won six in a row, including that big win over Benfica, before drawing 1-1 at home to Rio Ave in their last pre-coronavirus fixture.
Their record currently reads 19 wins, three draws and two defeats, with 50 goals scored and 16 conceded.
But Porto’s lack of a real finisher in attack could come back to bite them if the league remains on a knife-edge until the last matchday.
Brazilian left back Alex Telles is remarkably their top scorer in the league so far this season, with eight in 23 appearances.
Misfiring Moussa Marega has just six in 20 upfront whilst Ze Luis has seven in 15.
They’re perhaps not helped by long-serving head coach Sérgio Conceição’s regular tinkering with his forward line, that also includes Tiquinho Soares, Vincent Aboubakar and exciting 17-year-old striker Fabio Silva.
The other man to keep an eye on in Porto’s famous blue and white stripes is Pepe. Though aged 37 now, the former Real Madrid centre-half is producing high quality performances and full value entertainment, when he’s not injured.
Benfica
Rúben Dias (credit: Daily Mail)
Managed by their former B team boss Bruno Lage, Benfica were in poor form before the coronavirus shutdown and surrendered first place.
This was epitomised by 14-goal striker Pizzi missing three of four penalties in their last two matches.
His nightmare contributed to Benfica’s run of one win in their last 5 (1-2-2) having been near perfect before that (18-0-1).
The Eagles’ only win since January was 1-0 at Gil Vicente, courtesy of an early strike from the league’s top scorer Carlos Vinicius (15 goals).
Benfica’s major winter addition to their squad was German international midfielder Julian Weigl from Borussia Dortmund, for a reported €20 million on a 4.5-year deal, though he’s yet to make a real impact.
Elsewhere former QPR attacker Adel Taarabt had his first consistent run in the team for a couple of years pre-lockdown.
The star man is Portugal centre-back Rúben Dias, who’s been linked with a big money move to both Manchester clubs and Barcelona – he reportedly has an £87 million release clause in his contract, negotiated by super-agent Jorge Mendes.
European places
Guimarães celebrate a goal at Famalicão (credit: record.pt)
The top two will definitely take Portugal’s Champions League spots, as usual, this season. Braga, 13 points behind Benfica on 46 in third, and Sporting CP, a further four behind (42) in fourth, are almost certain to take two of the Europa League places.
Not only are they comfortably and consistently the next best teams and biggest clubs in the country, but they also enjoy a handy cushion with ten games to go.
Sporting remain four points ahead of fifth place Rio Ave (38), despite the sale of star player Bruno Fernandes to Manchester United in January and labouring to an unconvincing 2-0 win at home to bottom of the table Aves in their last outing.
The lowly visitors were reduced to nine men after only 19 minutes, but Sporting didn’t open the scoring until beyond the hour mark and required a penalty to seal the victory.
Rio Ave are currently set for European football next season too though, as fifth will take the Portuguese Cup’s Europa League place due to Porto and Benfica meeting in the final.
In a three-horse race, Vitória Guimarães and Famalicão are both just one point further back in sixth and seventh, both on 37 points.
Newly promoted Famalicão have been helped by a takeover from an Israeli billionaire, a relationship with Jorge Mendes and plenty of new signings, including English left-back Josh Tymon.
They started the season in fine form, were top in October and beat Sporting 3-1 in their last home game.
But they’ve won just one of their last eight matches and suffered a humiliating 7-0 defeat at home to Guimarães in February.
Relegation battle
Paços de Ferreira celebrate a goal at Aves (credit: noticiasaominuto.com)
At the wrong end of the Primeira Liga table, third bottom Paços de Ferreira’s consecutive wins just before the coronavirus suspension of football seems to have cut adrift the two clubs occupying the relegation places.
They triumphed 3-1 at last place Aves in a huge six-pointer, following a 2-1 win against Famalicão.
It left Aves with 19 defeats and just 13 points after 24 matches, trailing Paços (22) by nine points with ten games to play.
In between them, Portimonense have just two wins so far this season and are six points from safety on 16.
Fourth bottom Marítimo are then eight above the drop zone on 24 points and fairly unlikely to get dragged into a fight for survival, despite just one win in nine (1-3-5) before the lockdown.
Next are Tondela in 14th on 25 points, with a single victory in their last 11 matches. They’re still only six points behind 8th place Moreirense though, in a slew of mid-table teams that seem both too far behind the European places to challenge and well clear of danger.
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Aymeric Laporte
Credit: Goal.com
The Frenchman turns 26 today and has been a solid defender for Manchester City in the time he has spent at the Manchester club but, how did he get to the level he’s at now.
From Bilbao U19’s, he progressed to CD Basconia for a year in 2011 and returned to Athletic Bilbao to make the step into the B team of the Spanish club.
He played eight games from July 2012 to Decmber 2012 for the B team and the youngster looked to make an impact in Bilbao.
In December 2012, Laporte was promoted into the senior team. In the half a season he was with the senior team, he appeared in 17 games for Bilbao.
His first full season came in the 13/14 season and what a season it was for Laporte. 38 games under his belt and scoring twice that season. Laporte still had a lot to learn but, was getting a lot of experience for his young age.
The next season he played 49 games in all competitions for Bilbao which was the most he had ever experienced and was a rock in the defence for the Spanish side.
45 games in the next season and 43 the season after saw Laporte be a hot prospect for European giants that may want to sign the cenre-back.
The first half of the 17/18 season saw Laporte play 30 times and assist three times with teams in other leagues looking to sign the defender in January.
On the 30th January 2018, Laporte would make the move to Manchester City for £59 million. In the half the season he got for City, he played 13 times and proved that he can make it in the Premier League.
His first full season in the 18/19 campaign, the Frenchman played 51 games in all competitions and only missed three games in the Premier League due to injury.
He’s only managed to feature eight times this season due to an ongoing knee problem and fitness issues which have sidelined him for long amount of time.
He is yet to make his international debut for the French national team but, has featured at every single level for France apart form the senior team.
He’s won a few trophies in his time as a player so far. With Athletic Bilbao he has won the Spanish Supercup and with Manchester City he has won the Premier League twice, the League Cup twice, the FA Cup once and the Community Shield once.
Joao Cancelo
Credit: Daily Mail
The Manchester City right-back also turns 26 and he’s had a tough time so far in Manchester.
He rose through the ranks at Benfica starting off in the U15’s in 2009 and making the first team in July 2014 but, he would be loaned out to Valencia for the season in that same August.
He would make 13 appearances for Valencia that season. In July 2015, he would sign for Valencia permanently for £13.5 million.
39 games for Valencia that season saw the Portuguese wing-back have one of his best seasons in football. Three goals and five assists that season created a lot of rumours of the player moving elsewhere. 38 games in the next season saw him score once and assist four times.
Inter came in for the full-back but only wanted to have the player for a year on loan. 28 appearances for the San Siro side followed for Cancelo scoring once and assisting four times for the second year running.
Juventus signed the right-back from Valencia in July 2018 for £36 million. He would feature 34 times for the club that season scoring once and assisting five times.
Cancelo was on the move yet again, this time moving to England in the summer of 2019 to Manchester City for £58 million. His first season in a Manchester City shirt has seen the Portuguese international feature 24 times scoring once and assisting once. It is clear to see that Cancelo hasn’t adapted to Premier League football yet.
Internationally, he has made 16 appearances for the Portugal national team scoring three goals and winning the inaugral UEFA Nations League trophy.
He’s a born winner with every club he has been at. He’s won the Portugues Supercup, Portuguese Cup, Portugues League Cup and Liga NOS with Benfica. He won the Serie A and Italian Supercup with Juventus and he has won the League Cup with Manchester City.
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