Benfica take on the visitors Real Madrid in the round 8 match of UEFA Europa League – League Phase. The match will be played on Wednesday, January 28th at Estádio da Luz (Lisbon).
Benfica brought in José in reaction to the first painful failure of the new season, when they collapsed in the opening Champions League match against Qarabag, turning a 2–0 lead into a 2–3 defeat. However, the arrival of the Special One has not really delivered the expected effect. In the Primeira Liga, Benfica now trail not only Sporting, who have beaten them to the title in recent years, but also Porto. They also lost to Porto in the cup, while earlier in the League Cup they were eliminated by Braga. In the Champions League, after the setback against the Azerbaijani side, they went on to lose to Chelsea, Newcastle and Bayer without scoring. Only at the very end of 2025 did they manage positive results against Ajax and Napoli. In the previous round against Juventus, they again failed to respond after conceding twice. Overall, recent form shows a lack of consistency across competitions. Even at home, Benfica have struggled to impose themselves against strong opponents.
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Real Madrid are starting over again in the middle of the season. In 2025, after all their past trophies, Los Blancos failed to win a single one, largely still under Carlo Ancelotti, losing in the Champions League to Arsenal and in all domestic Spanish competitions to Barcelona. Under Xabi Alonso, they were beaten by PSG at the Club World Cup, and although they initially won El Clásico in La Liga, they later fell behind the Catalans. They also suffered Champions League defeats to Liverpool and Manchester City. The final blow was once again delivered by Barcelona, who defeated their eternal rivals in the Spanish Super Cup. As a result, the match against Monaco was already played under Arbeloa, including a cup defeat with him in charge, and it ended in a heavy 1–6 loss. Recent results suggest a team in transition, still searching for stability. Despite the turmoil, Real Madrid remain capable of raising their level in big European nights.
Strangely enough, the neighbors have met only once, and that was in a friendly back in 2012, when the Portuguese side won 5–2. Mourinho is unlikely to stop his former pupils at this stage. The bet is on an away win for the visitors from Spain.
Prediction for the match: Real Madrid to win.
