One of the most eagerly awaited fixtures in the Portuguese football calendar comes early this season. At 7pm on Saturday evening the Portuguese capital will come to a standstill as Benfica and Sporting go head to head at the Estádio da Luz.
Both teams have an identical record in the league (2/2 wins, 5 goals scored, 2 conceded), but in terms of team chemistry, performance level and the general level of optimism surrounding the club, Benfica appear some way ahead of their Lisbon rivals.
That said, it has become something of a tradition in the match known as the Dérbi Eterno – no translation needed – that the team in worse shape comes out on top. PortuGOAL previews the first Clássico of the 2018/19 Primeira Liga season.
Early season form: Benfica start brightly, Sporting struggle
Benfica have started the season promisingly. The Eagles saw off potential tricky fixtures to clock up wins against Vitória Guimarães and Boavista in the opening two rounds of the Liga NOS, as well as dispatching Turkish side Fenerbahçe in Champions League qualifying. However, Rui Vitória’s men suffered their first setback of the nascent campaign on Tuesday as wasteful finishing led to a disappointing 1-1 draw at home against PAOK in the Champions League playoff. Midfield stalwart Pizzi has started off the season in fine fettle, notching five goals in as many games.
The effects of Sporting’s torrid off-field summer have had the knock-on effect of delaying the team’s preparation for the new season. Coach José Peseiro has had to try and implement his ideas without knowing the final make-up of the squad. Just this week Malian striker Abdoulay Diaby and Serbian midfielder Nemanja Gudelj were added to the mix, although only the former is available for tomorrow’s match. It is therefore unsurprising that Sporting put in two soporific displays against Moreirense and Vitória de Setúbal in the opening rounds of the Liga. On both occasions there was little spark, imagination or discernible plan on show, although the decisive contributions of Cape Verdean winger Jovane Cabral from the bench were a welcome bright spot.
Team news and tactics
Midfield trio shine
Benfica look likely to be without injured strikers Nicolás Castillo and Jonas again, meaning Argentine front man Facundo Ferreyra will continue up front as the lone forward. Salvio missed the PAOK game owing to illness but should recover to take his position on the right flank with Cervi on the other side in the 4-3-3 that has quickly become Vitória’s first-choice line-up.
Hence, impressive youngster Gedson Fernandes shares midfield duties with Fejsa and Pizzi. The solid platform provided by the ever dependable Fejsa and the aggressive and ball-carrying Gedson goes a long way to explaining Pizzi’s bright start to the season, the Portugal international freed up to venture further forward in the knowledge his colleagues will keep things tight behind him. And talking about academy products making the grade, Benfica received a boost this week as centre-back Rúben Dias committed his future to the club by signing an extended contract. Dias will play alongside Jardel, with André Almeida and Álex Grimaldo occupying the full-back spots.
Dost doubt
Sporting’s line-up is more difficult to predict, not least because star striker Bas Dost is struggling to overcome a muscle strain and faces a late fitness test. Should the Dutch marksman be ruled out, Peseiro may be tempted to take a risk and throw new signing Diaby straight into the fray, although Fredy Montero did well as a second-half substitute last week. The big argument for using Diaby is the pace he provides – an ingredient patently missing from this Sporting side when Raphinha and Jovane start on the bench, as has happened so far in 2018/19.
The composition of the midfield is also a conundrum. Peseiro seems intent on playing 4-2-3-1 this season, with either Petrovic or Misic chosen to partner Battaglia in a double-pivot, neither of whom have covered themselves in glory. This position of the second deep-lying midfielder alongside Battaglia seems destined for new signing Gudelj, but with the Serb not yet available, one other option would be to use Marcos Acuña there, which was tried with a degree of success in the second half last week against Setúbal. Acuña has been ineffective in his usual wide position and he offers more than Petrovic and Misic in terms of both creativity and aggression.
At the back, the defence picks itself – Ristovski, Mathieu, Coates and Jefferson – (in the case of the full-backs more because of lack of alternatives than because of great performances), but there are question marks surrounding the goalkeeper. First-choice Emiliano Viviano got injured before a ball was kicked this season, his replacement Salin did well at Moreirense, but made an awful mistake and looked highly suspect last weekend. New signing Renan Ribeiro could get the nod.
Article update: Injury absentees confirmed
Shortly after this preview was originally published the Sporting and Benfica coaches, José Peseiro and Rui Vitória respectively, held their pre-match press conferences. Peseiro confirmed that striker Bas Dost and goalkeeper Viviano were out injured, and that Diaby is not in the squad given that he only arrived in Lisbon three days ago and has not played for a month. His Benfica counterpart Vitória stated that strike duo Jonas and Castillo had not recovered from injury and were out, but that Salvio was back in the squad.
Quote, unquote
Rui Vitória, Benfica coach:
“Sporting are a different team to last season. Players have come in, others have left, but they have shown the ability to build a great team, with high-quality players. I don’t believe Sporting are weakened, we’re talking about a great institution and club and they will always be contenders for the title. The derby is always a wonderful occasion and I think tomorrow we’ll see an enjoyable spectacle.”
José Peseiro, Sporting coach:
“We know what this match means in terms of history and the satisfaction you get from winning it, but we also know how difficult it is to win at the Luz and to beat Benfica. In the last 5 games between the clubs Sporting have drawn three and lost two. But we’re eager to play a great game and we’re thinking about nothing else.”
Predicted line-ups:
Benfica: Vlachodimos, André Almeida, Rúben Dias, Jardel, Grimaldo, Fejsa, Gedson, Pizzi, Salvio, Cervi, Ferreyra
Sporting: Salin, Ristovski, Coates, Mathieu, Jefferson, Battaglia, Petrovic, Bruno Fernandes, Acuña, Nani, Montero
Follow all the action on Twitter as PortuGOAL reports live from the Estádio da Luz.
By Tom Kundert
