· 2 min readIn this Casa Pia vs Benfica match, I analyse the key tactical moments, individual performances and turning points of the game.
Benfica came into the game with an obligation to respond to the draw on the opening matchday and couldn’t have asked for a much better start. In the 3rd minute, Prestianni cut in from the left, drove forward with space and took a shot from outside the box. The effort looked to be heading towards David Sousa, but the Casa Pia centre-back failed to clear it properly with his head and ended up deflecting the ball away from André Gomes. 0-1 and Benfica were ahead very early.
Casa Pia had the ball and tried to build, but it was almost always harmless possession. Gabi Pereira did hit the post in the 14th minute, but practically in the very next move, Benfica responded with another blow. Rochinha lost the ball under pressure, Pavlidis drove forward and waited for Rafa’s movement, with the winger finding himself through and lifting the ball over the goalkeeper with great quality. 0-2.
Benfica were in control without too many problems, defending in a 4-4-2 without the ball, with Pavlidis and Sudakov up front and Rafa dropping to the right. And they continued to create chances. In the 35th minute, during a four-on-four attack, Prestianni found Sudakov inside the box, but the Ukrainian’s shot lacked power and André Gomes saved. Another opportunity that shows a Sudakov still far from his best.
Half-time arrived with 59% possession for Benfica, 10 shots compared to just one from Casa Pia and 1.42 xG against 0.08. The difference was already clear, but what happened next was an absolute avalanche.
In the 47th minute, Rafa and Pavlidis combined, with Rafa’s pass going between the goalkeeper’s legs. Pavlidis won the position and made no mistake. 0-3. Two minutes later, the Greek striker scored again: he recovered the ball after the attacking pressure, beat two opponents and cut onto his left before firing into the back of the net. 0-4 and Casa Pia were completely lost, especially after Ofori gifted the ball far too close to his own box.
In the 54th minute, Rafa opened the play to the right for Leandro Barreiro, who put the ball into the box and found Pavlidis once again. The Greek completed his hat-trick in just eight minutes. 0-5. And there was still more to come.
In the 58th minute, Dalh delivered a low cross along the byline, but the ball hit Ofori and went into his own net. 0-6. In the 61st minute, Jhon Durán, just two minutes after coming on, took advantage of a rebound, controlled the ball and fired a left-footed shot from outside the box. Pure class. 0-7.
In the second half, Benfica reached 75% possession and continued to push Casa Pia back. In the 90+2nd minute, there was even a red card for Domingos José Gabriel Bandeira, who had been on the pitch for just 13 minutes. The tempo naturally dropped in the final minutes, but the message had already been sent: after the draw on the opening matchday, Benfica responded with an absurd thrashing and a second half in which they simply ran over their opponents.
Post-match
Benfica win and convince in a game that wasn’t difficult, but there was pressure to get the victory. A humiliation in Rio Maior, and Casa Pia need to wake up because today was ugly.
