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Benfica will officially start their 2022/23 campaign tomorrow with Danish side FC Midtjylland.
UEFA Champions League Third Qualifying Round
SL Benfica x FC Midtjylland
August 2, 2022 - Estádio da Luz
Players to Watch
SL Benfica: Enzo Fernandez, Florentino Luís, David Neres
FC Midtjylland: Anders Dreyer
Benfica is coming off a pre-season where they won all five of their matches and played an exciting, high-intensity style of football. With the exception of their 3-2 win over Newcastle in the return of the Eusébio Cup, Benfica won all of their preseason matches by two goals or more.
For the Danish runners-up, they’ll be coming into this match with an interim manager. After defeating AEK Larnaca on penalties in the 2nd UCL qualifying round, FC Midtjylland parted ways with manager Bo Henriksen. Henriksen only managed at the club for one season, but the abrupt nature of the change will certainly affect the side. In his only match in charge, interim manager Henrik Jensen watched his side rout Odense BK 5-1 in the Danish Superliga
For tomorrow’s match, Benfica will look to use the home crowd and their preseason chemistry to secure a decisive victory. If that’s to happen, the youthful midfield partnership of Florentino Luís and Enzo Fernandez will be crucial. Another newcomer, David Neres, will be another exciting player to watch for Roger Schmidt’s side tomorrow. Fans will be curious to see who’s chosen as the number 9 option tomorrow, with both Seixal products Gonçalo Ramos and Henrique Araújo likely to be up for the test.
The visitors will be missing one of their top performers from last season’s Danish Superliga campaign, which saw them finish 3 points behind champions FC Copenhagen. Brazilian center midfielder Evander left in the first half of their UCL second leg matchup and also missed their 5-1 bashing of Odense BK. He was the side's leading scorer last season with 12 league Nonetheless, Danish international and 24-year old winger Anders Dreyer will be looking to put one past Benfica early in the match to give his team hope.
Match Prediction
SL Benfica: 3 - 1 FC Midtjylland
Goals: Gonçalo Ramos, Rafa Silva, Morato, Anders Dreyer
This is the first official match of the season, and fans can always expect there to be signs of nerves on the pitch. However, Roger Schmidt’s side has been very efficient in implementing his Gegenpress style so far. The absence of their manager and star midfielder will surely hurt the visiting side.
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