Barcelona travel to the Iberian Peninsula for their penultimate game of the Champions League stage against Benfica in Lisbon.
After succumbing to Monaco with ten men on the first day, Barça have won five in a row in this competition and occupy second place in the league stage standings. The heroics of Ferran Torres from the bench at Borussia Dortmund last month means they are all but assured of a place in the last 16.
However, their momentum gained at the start of 2025 was thwarted by Getafe on Saturday evening as José Bordalas’ side fought tooth and nail for a point to further hamper Barca’s title hopes of league
Hansi Flick’s team has already taken this year’s medal with the Spanish Super Cup, with this success also matched by Benfica’s triumph in the Taca da Liga final against Sporting CP.
Bruno Lage’s side are 15th in the league stage table and are pushing for a place in the top eight, but they will need a result here. Benfica are also locked in an exciting three-horse race for the Primeira Liga title thanks to Sporting’s malaise since the departure of Ruben Amorim.
here it is 90 minutes tuesday guide Champions League shock
Benfica vs Barcelona head-to-head record (last five games)
Current form (all competitions)
|
Benfica |
Barcelona |
|---|---|
|
Benfica 4-0 Famalicao – 17/01/25 |
Getafe 1-1 Barcelona – 18/01/25 |
|
Farense 1-3 Benfica – 14/01/25 |
Barcelona 5-1 Real Betis – 15/01/25 |
|
Sporting CP 1-1 (6-7p) Benfica – 01/11/25 |
Real Madrid 2-5 Barcelona – 12/01/25 |
|
Benfica 3-0 Braga – 01/08/25 |
Athletic Club 0-2 Barcelona – 08/01/25 |
|
Benfica 1-2 Braga – 01/04/25 |
Barbastre 0-4 Barcelona – 04/01/25 |
|
country |
TV channel/live broadcast |
|---|---|
|
united kingdom |
Discovery+, discovery+ app, TNT Sports 1 |
|
united states |
Paramount+, fuboTV, TUDN.com, Univision NOW, TUDN App, TUDN USA, UniMas |
|
canada |
DAZN Canada |
Àngel Di Maria will miss Barça for the 20th time this Tuesday night, with the Argentine star a major doubt due to injury. the first Real Madrid The man has won just six of 19 games against them, scoring four goals.
The hosts are certainly without Renato Sanches and Tiago Gouveia due to respective thigh and shoulder problems.
Kerem Akturkoglu has enjoyed a superb debut season in Portugal and is the man to contain Barcelona in transition. The Turkish international has scored 17 goals in all competitions this season.
Benfica predicted the line-up against Barcelona (4-3-3): Trubin; Bach, Araujo, Otamendi, Fernández; Aursnes, Florentino, Kokcu; Amdouni, Pavlidis, Akturkoglu.
There has been some concern over Marc Casado’s condition after Flick took him off in the second half against Getafe, but the midfielder’s withdrawal was not due to injury and he is in the traveling squad.
Despite the strong link with the return to Girona, Eric Garcia also travels with the Barcelona squad.
The visitors are again without Marc-André ter Stegen, Marc Bernal and Íñigo Martínez due to injury.
Ferran Torres and Frenkie de Jong will be considered as starters, but Dani Olmo will not return to Flick’s starting line-up after picking up a muscle injury at the weekend.
Predicted lineup of Barcelona against Benfica (4-2-3-1): Pity; Kounde, Araujo, Christensen, Balde; Married, De Jong; Fermín, Gavi, Ferran; Lewandowski.
Given Barça’s strong position in the table, Flick could rest and rotate some key names in Lisbon. However, the visitors enjoy impressive strength in depth, especially in creative positions.
Their La Liga title hopes are starting to fade, but this team at their peak is as good as any on the continent. We’re unlikely to see their utopian iteration on Tuesday night if Flick makes changes, and Benfica’s desperation for a result should ensure an exciting contest.
We’ve seen superior Benfica teams in the not-so-recent past, that’s for sure, but they’ll have a chance of getting a result at home if Flick plays for his side.
