Vizela will host Benfica in the last quarterfinal of the Taca de Portugal on Thursday. The Vizelenses will be out for revenge after their defeat to the Eagles in the fourth round of the same competition back in 2019.
Preview (Vizela vs. Benfica)
Vizela’s problems are still ongoing as they are currently anchored to the bottom of the Primeira Liga. It was after a miserable run of four straight losses, which included their most recent 1-0 loss to Vitoria de Guimaraes. After Pablo Villar was fired in December, Ruben de la Barrera was named manager. However, the Spaniard has struggled to motivate the Vizelenses. They have lost all of their league games since he took over. In the last ten games in all competitions, the Braga district team has only triumphed once. It was against Arouca 1-0 in the Taca de Portugal round of 16.
They have, however, successfully survived the competition thus far without requiring extra time. They scored four goals and gave up just one in three games. Next up comes a rival they have never defeated. They have lost six and drawn one of their seven meetings, including their lone prior meeting in this competition. Benfica had won ten of their previous eleven games in all competitions. They lost only on penalties against Estoril in the League Cup following a 1-1 draw in regulation time. The Eagles defeated Gil Vincente 3-0 with goals from Rafael Silva, Joao Neves, and Arthur Cabral.
Having played one more game than city rivals Sporting Lisbon, Roger Schmidt’s team, the defending Primeira Liga champions, are atop the table and have not lost in the top division since the first weekend of the new season back in August. Benfica will now focus on the Taca de Portugal. It is a competition they have won a record 26 times in its 86-year history. However, the Eagles have not advanced to the final since 2021, when they were defeated by Braga on Wednesday. Their previous victory came in 2017. They defeated rivals Braga 3-2 in the final round after winning 4-1 against Lusitania and 2-0 against Famalicao on their way to the round of 16.
Team News
The Spanish midfielder Pedro Ortiz, who suffered an injury against Moreirense in December, has not played for Vizela this season and is still out of commission. Samuel Essende, a former Caen player, left the game against Arouca soon before halftime due to an injury. In the meantime, 30-year-old Juan Bernat, a former player for Paris Saint-Germain, is not in contention for Benfica after being out since sustaining a muscle injury back in October.
The 23-year-old forward Casper Tengstedt, who is yet to play this season due to a thigh injury sustained against AVS on December 21, joins him on the team’s injury chart. Due to his two recent goals, Cabral ought to continue to start at the head of the attack on Thursday.
Vizela 0-2 Benfica
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