Champions League: Benfica and Barca meet again just 6 weeks after 9-goal thriller
Madrid (Spain), March 4 (IANS) Spanish giant FC Barcelona will visit Lisbon on Wednesday for the first leg of their Champions League last-16 away match against Benfica for another clash between two former champions.
The game comes less than two months after the two teams met in arguably the most exciting of all the matches in the group stage of the tournament, which saw Barcelona come back to win 5-4 after trailing 3-1 and 4-2 on a chaotic night that saw Robert Lewandowski and Raphinha each score twice, with Raphinha sprinting half the length of the pitch to score the winning goal in the sixth minute of injury time.
Hansi Flick’s side has returned to form in Spain since the end of January and is now top of the table, with a one-point lead over Atletico Madrid and three points over Real Madrid, who face each other in Europe on Tuesday night.
Barcelona enjoyed a comfortable 4-0 win at home to Real Sociedad on Sunday, in a game that was made much easier in the 17th minute when the visitor had defender Aritz Elustondo sent off, reports Xinhua.
With the game under control, Flick was able to take off players such as Pau Cubarsi, Pedri, Raphinha, Dani Olmo, and Ronald Araujo, while central defender Inigo Martinez was able to watch the entire game from the bench.
All of those players, with the possible exception of Araujo, will start on Wednesday night, while Frenkie de Jong is likely to return in central midfield for Marc Casado.
Benfica coach Bruno Lage has a long list of injuries, with Alexander Bah, Renato Sanches, Manu Silva, and Tiago Gouveia all out, while veteran winger Angel Di Maria is struggling with a muscle problem that is likely to keep him out as well.
Di Maria will be a big loss as his experience in tight spaces would be a big help in trying to beat Barcelona’s high-press and offside trap.
With the return leg scheduled in Barcelona next Tuesday, Wednesday’s game is unlikely to see the all-out attack of the last meeting between the two teams, but Benfica have shown how to score against Barcelona, and Flick has made things clear he won’t be changing tactics.
–IANS
bsk/
