2023-12-08 01:30:04
We usually only talk about duels between eagles and lions when there is a Lisbon derby, between Benfica and Sporting, but, this Friday, a national holiday – the day of Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception -, we have the right to another duel between these two animalistic references in Portugal, with the national champion hosting newly promoted Farense, in Luz.
Benfica arrives at this game even more weakened, in a season that has left something to be desired in terms of results and performance, with two draws in a row, the last of which was also against a recently promoted team, Moreirense (0-0). The Reds are slow to convince, they appear to be much more fragile than last season and Roger Schmidt himself seems to have more difficulties, for different reasons, in imposing the very attractive style of play that he imposed last season.
Given what has been seen this season, red fans are crying out for a “shake up” from Roger Schmidt to the team, which has seen several players underperform or not fit into their new roles (the biggest example being the new “full-backs” », Morato and Aursnes), but the German never got us used to big changes and, therefore, a relatively similar pattern to the last round is expected. If there are changes, the most likely names are Kokçu – the team needs his ability to pass risk in the final third – and Arthur Cabral or Musa for the attacking front, but there would be others who deserve confidence.
Looking at the other side, we see a Farense a little similar to his «colleague» Moreirense, two recently promoted, who despite this status are impressing and are very comfortable in the first half of the league table. But it’s not just the results. It’s the way they arrive. The Leões de Faro are a courageous team with the ball and unafraid to promote their wingers, with players like Mattheus Oliveira or Mohamed Belloumi in great shape. This season they have already beaten SC Braga (3-1) and caused problems for Sporting (2-3) and FC Porto (2-1).
José Mota was confident in Farense’s ability to «unnerve» Benfica, in match preview, and there may be a rabbit in the hat, but he also spoke about the importance of maintaining his usual playing philosophy, so he doesn’t seem to be planning any major changes to the team. It wouldn’t be surprising to have a starting eleven that was the same or very similar to that of the last round, even though they are coming off a defeat (1-2).
Historical domain
Despite the ups and downs in Farense’s recent years, these two Portuguese teams know each other well on the field, where they have faced each other on a total of 53 occasions, divided between all competitions. However, the dominance clearly belongs to the eagles, who won 36 of these duels, compared to just six victories for the lions of Faro. Furthermore, Farense hasn’t beaten Benfica since 1998 (1-0), although they achieved a draw in the last meeting (0-0).
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