Boavista take on the visitors Benfica in the round 6 match of Liga Portugal. The match will be played on Monday, September 23rd at Estádio do Bessa Século XXI (Porto).
Boavista are remembered by football fans as perhaps the last team in Portuguese football to successfully challenge the country's giants, even managing to win the league title. However, it was later revealed how those results were achieved, and the punishment was severe, including the loss of their professional club status. Eventually, the team returned to the Primeira Liga, but they have never fully recovered from that setback and haven't shown much ambition. For example, last season they finished in 15th place. This season, despite a decent start (a win over Casa Pia and 4 points from four matches), they’ve faced difficulties from the beginning: financial problems, a transfer ban... And now both goalkeepers are injured. As a result, 17-year-old Souza had to start against Estrela. On one hand, they still managed a draw and earned a point. On the other hand, they conceded twice—just as many as in all their previous matches combined.
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Benfica has already changed their coach. In 2022, the "Eagles" hired Roger Schmidt. In his first year, he not only led the team deep into the Champions League but also restored their dominance in the Primeira Liga. This success allowed the German to keep his job despite a disappointing following season, where the team underperformed both in Europe and domestically, losing the league title race to neighbors Sporting and suffering an unexpected defeat in the cup semifinal as clear favorites. But after four August matches, which included a loss to Famalicão and a draw against Moreirense, patience ran out. Bruno Lage took over as head coach and began with a dominant win over Santa Clara. His next test was a Champions League trip to Crvena Zvezda. In Belgrade, Benfica scored twice in the first half hour and secured a comfortable win.
A year ago, Boavista managed a rare win, their first in 7 meetings. However, Benfica took revenge in the second round. The "Eagles" are clearly the stronger side. Given the opponent's squad issues, Benfica should win comfortably with a -1.5 goal handicap.
Prediction for the match: Benfica to win with -1.5 handicap.
