A goal festival brought the Estádio da Luz to life

MATCH HIGHLIGHTS

An offensive avalanche resulted in six goals in Benfica's 6-1 win over Vizela on matchday 22 of the  Liga Betclic. Neres, who scored a brace, Otamendi, Tiago Gouveia, Rafa and Marcos Leonardo scored in the biggest win of the season.

With six changes compared to the last game against Toulouse, Roger Schmidt opted for a line-up made up of Trubin, Bah, Tomás Araújo, Otamendi, Morato, João Neves, João Mário, Neres, Tiago Gouveia, Rafa and Tengstedt. Also noteworthy was Prestianni's first appearance in the squad list (he sat on the bench).

In the 16th minute, Rafa pressed goalkeeper Ruberto and the latter cleared the ball onto Morato's head. As the play continued, Tiago Gouveia fought for possession with an opponent and the ball fell to Tengstedt, who dribbled past the goalkeeper and, with no angle, set up Neres. The Brazilian's first shot was intercepted by Lebedenko, but the No. 7 didn't miss and made it 1-0.

Seconds after Buntic replaced the injured Ruberto in the Vizela goal, Benfica increased their lead in the 25th minute. Following a short corner, Neres crossed into the heart of the box, where Otamendi out jumped two rival defenders and headed the ball into the back of the net. It was the third goal of the season for the captain, who had never scored like that since arriving at Estádio da Luz in 2020.

In a display of great efficiency, the Eagles only needed five more minutes to make it 3-0. On the edge of the Benfica box, João Neves intercepted Domingos Quina's shot and the ball fell to Rafa. He accelerated, dribbled past Anderson and found Tengstedt on the left flank. The Dane broke into the area, chipped the ball over Buntic and hit the post. On the rebound, Tiago Gouveia shot through Jota's legs to make it 3-0. There was an explosion of joy in the Cathedral as the Made In Benfica player scored his third goal in 14 games.

At 45'+1', in a play started by Trubin, Otamendi asked Tiago Gouveia, who, with a first-time pass, dismantled the opposing defense and set up Rafa. The No. 27 made his way down the center of the park and set up Neres, who fired home to make it 4-0. It was the Brazilian international's second brace since arriving at Estádio da Luz.

The crowd was still celebrating the 4-0 win when Benfica scored the fifth goal. At 45'+4', Tiago Gouveia recovered the ball in midfield, and it fell to Tengstedt. The Dane evaded Diogo Nascimento's tackle with a subtle touch and slipped a pass through to Rafa, who ran down the center and didn't miss in the one-on-one with Buntic.

Following the tribute to the national women's rugby at half-time, Benfica went into the second half with a change made by Roger Schmidt: Di María came on in place of Rafa.

With a more proactive stance, Vizela began to press higher up the pitch and managed to reduce the score to 5-1 in the 48th minute. Inside the Benfica area, Matheus Pereira intercepted a pass from Trubin and the ball fell to Essende. The Frenchman's first shot was stopped by the Benfica goalkeeper, but the Minho forward scored on the rebound. 

In the 71st minute, Vizela had a superb opportunity to score a second goal: Tomás Silva was fouled by Morato inside the Benfica area and the referee awarded a penalty. Called to the 11-meter mark, Essende shot wide, but Trubin flew to his left and stopped the Frenchman's shot. This was the third penalty saved by the keeper this season (against Portimonense, Casa Pia and now Vizela).

With all the Vizela players in Benfica's half, Anderson cleared the ball against Neres, and he took off in the direction of the opponent's penalty area. Squeezed by two, the No. 7 looked sideways and assisted Marcos Leonardo, who fired home for his fourth goal of the season.

With the score at 6-1, Roger Schmidt swapped Tiago Gouveia and Neres - later voted Man of the Match for his two goals and two assists - for Álvaro Carreras and Rollheiser before the final whistle, which was blown with jubilant demonstrations from the fans at the spectacle on show.

Benfica return to the pitch next Thursday, February 22, against Toulouse, in the second leg of the Europa League play-off. After a 2-1 win in Lisbon, the eagles visit the Toulouse stadium from 5.45 pm (mainland Portugal time).