“There will be games in which we play better than here and, maybe, don’t take the three points.” Rui Vitória is a very distinct personality from his Benfica predecessor, Jorge Jesus, but sometimes shares his penchant for directness. Vitória didn’t mince his words in assessing his team’s performance in Saturday’s win at Chaves, which was a hard-fought end to a tough week.
At the end of it, however, the champions sit unbeaten atop Liga NOS, and with a touch of recent historical context, one is more likely to read the Chaves game as more evidence of Benfica’s formidable mettle rather than take it as evidence of future vulnerability, as their rivals Sporting and Porto will hope.
By the time they leave the field at Stadio San Paolo on Wednesday night after their away tie at Napoli, which looks like their hardest Champions League task on paper at least, Benfica will have been through nine days of quite intense competition, stretching from last Monday’s big home game with Braga and taking in the trip to Chaves. There is no let-up for Vitória and his players but – as we pointed out when looking at Sporting – that is something that has become synonymous with them during the post-Jesus era.
This current difficult run of fixtures was set up inauspiciously, with the concession of a stoppage-time equaliser to on-loan Talisca – a player that is still registered to Benfica, of course – preventing a winning start to the Champions League campaign against Besiktas. It was a match which Benfica should have sewn up in advance of that late leveller, having led from the 12th minute and had 14 shots to the visitors’ 10.
The failure to kill off Besiktas must have alarmed Vitória to a degree. It was the moment in which the decimation of Benfica’s forward line – via injury – came home to roost. With no Jonas, Kostas Mitroglou or Raúl Jiménez, teenage winger Gonçalo Guedes played up front alone. Though Guedes landed 3 of his 5 efforts at goal against the Turkish champions on target, his lost duel in the closing stages against visiting goalkeeper Tolga Zengin was crucial. It would have put the game to bed.
Jonas has played only one match (and 89 minutes) in Liga NOS this season having been an ever-present in last season’s campaign, scoring 32 times in 34 games.
They have also had to largely do without the services of Jiménez (one start, one appearance as substitute in the Liga) - astonishingly, the most expensive player ever bought by a Portuguese club after Benfica purchased the rest of his registration this summer, bringing the total outlay on the Mexican to €22 million. Whatever your view on Jiménez’s value, his pace makes him an interesting option and Benfica really could have done with him right now.
So Mitroglou’s return has come at just the right time. His goal here put As Aguías in front, coming just five days after his crucial double against Braga. His all-round game has come on enormously as he has honed his physical condition in Lisbon – O Jogo claimed last week that he has lost 10kg since arriving. Proving he can flourish up front alone, without Jonas, is highly impressive too, and he works as a great foil for Pizzi, who got his second goal of the season here. Pizzi is an all-action midfielder but despite having a very different profile to the departed Nico Gaitán, is filling the creator’s gap left by the Argentinian, delivering an impressive 3.3 key passes per match to date.
At the moment, one of Vitória’s main creative outlets is Alejandro Grimaldo at left-back. Little wonder then that Pep Guardiola – in the company of his agent brother, Pere – was present at the Luz last Monday to run the rule over the Barcelona product. He saw a very tidy display from the 21-year-old in Benfica’s toughest match of the season so far. Grimaldo provided his second assist of the season, and it was key in breaking the game open. The left-footer’s beautiful delivery just needed a deft touch from Mitroglou to guide it home past António Filipe.
If the young star is still learning the defensive side of the game (though he is already posting very tidy numbers, with 2.5 tackles and 3 interceptions per game), he is flanked with quality. Victor Lindelöf and Lisandro López provide great strength in the centre, with Nelsinho complementing Grimaldo on the other side.
The back four also have great protection from Ljubomir Fejsa who, having suffered from knee problems, has again become a key piece of the side. His 4 tackles and 2.7 interceptions per game underline his influence. What’s more, the Serbian is the ultimate lucky mascot, having been part of a champion side in the last eight successive seasons over spells at three different clubs – Partizan, Olympiacos and Benfica.
It was never easy for Benfica at the weekend, something underlined by Chaves striker Rafael Lopes on Twitter after the game, as he thanked supporters for their backing. He had a goal ruled out for a narrow offside when the game was goalless, and his teammate Bruno Braga hit the post. The assured Ederson needed a bit of luck to secure his win bonus.
“Thank you Chaves fans for not having let Benfica play at home,” Rafael wrote. That would have been all too easy. Instead, by providing such a steep climb, Chaves provided the perfect antipasti, in the words of O Jogo’s Tomaz Andrade, for this week’s trip to Naples.
Can Benfica cause an upset in Naples without last season's top scorer Jonas? Let us know in the comments below
