Having placed one foot in the quarter-finals of the Champions League, Benfica take on Boavista at the Estadio da Luz as round 21 of the Primeira Liga comes to an end on Monday.

Os Axadrezados, who are currently on a run of five consecutive games without a win in this fixture, will be looking to get one over As Aguias and secure their first away win since November.

Match preview

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Benfica cruised to their fifth Champions League win of the campaign on Wednesday when they saw off Club Brugge 2-0 in the first leg of their round-of-16 clash.

The Belgian outfit were simply outclassed and outplayed at the Jan Breydel Stadium as Joao Mario and David Neres scored second-half goals to hand the visitors a vital first-leg victory.

Prior to that, Roger Schmidt's side suffered a quarter-final exit from the Taca de Portugal as they were beaten 5-4 on penalties by Braga after Goncalo Guedes and Mutassim Al Musrati scored for either side in normal time.

Two weeks on from their last league involvement — a 3-0 home victory over Casa Pia on February 4 — Benfica now return to action in the Primeira Liga, where they currently hold a five-point lead at the top of the standings.

As Aguias head into Monday on a run of four consecutive league victories, scoring 11 goals and keeping four clean sheets, while they have picked up an impressive 16 points from the last 18 available since the turn of the year.

Benfica have been solid at both ends of the pitch in what is a superb charge for their first Primeira Liga crown since 2018 as they boast the league's most lethal attack with 51 goals scored, while conceding the joint-fewest (12).

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While Benfica are currently riding the wave, the same cannot be said for Boavista, who were left spitting feathers once again when they were held to a goalless draw by Casa Pia last Monday.

In a game where Sebastian Perez received his marching orders, Boavista failed to make any of their clear-cut chances count at the Estadio do Bessa as they were denied consecutive home wins for the first time since September.

Although Petit's side are now unbeaten in four consecutive home matches, claiming two wins and two draws, a poor run of results on the road has prevented them from settling into the top half of the league table.

Since September's 2-1 victory at Arouca, Boavista have lost all but one of six away games in the league, with a 2-2 draw against Santa Clara on February 4 being the exception.

With 26 points from 20 matches, Os Axadrezados are currently 10th in the Primeira Liga standings, but could move up to eighth place with all three points on Monday.

However, Boavista must overcome the stern challenge of a Benfica side who are unbeaten in 16 of the last 18 meetings between the teams, claiming 13 wins and three draws since August 2014.

Team News

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Benfica head into the game with a clean bill of health and no suspension concerns, giving Schmidt the luxury of a full-strength squad at his disposal.

Off the back of his side's solid Champions League display, the German tactician could name an unchanged XI on Monday, meaning that we could see a back four of Alejandro Grimaldo, Nicolas Otamendi, Antonio Silva and Alexander Bah.

Mario, who has registered seven goal involvements in his last five matches, should handle business at the opposite end of the pitch, alongside Goncalo Ramos and Goncalo Guedes.

Boavista will be without the services of Perez, who will serve a one-match suspension after picking up a red card against Casa Pia last time out.

Uruguayan defender Rodrigo Abascal will also sit out Monday's contest after crossing the yellow card threshold with his booking in the aforementioned game.

Veteran defender Vincent Sasso is a major doubt after missing the game against Casa Pia through injury, while Filipe Ferreira has been out of action since October.

Benfica possible starting lineup:
Vlachodimos; Bah, Otamendi, Silva, Grimaldo; Luís, Chiquinho, Aursnes; Neres, Mario, Guedes

Boavista possible starting lineup:
Bracali; Malheiro, Sasso, Abascal; Onyemaechi, Vukotic, Camara, Agra; Perez, Mangas, Njie

We say: Benfica 2-0 Boavista

While Boavista will be looking to find their feet this weekend, they face a rampant Benfica side who are currently firing on all cylinders. As Aguias have been imperious in the history of this fixture and we are tipping them to extend their dominance over the visitors.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.

Written by
Joshua Ojele

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