Dazzling attacking display sees Benfica move top of Primiera Liga, pressure mounts on Boavista amid relegation battle | OneFootball

Benfica 3-0 Boavista

A comprehensive 3-0 victory for SL Benfica on Saturday evening saw the Lisbon club move above their city rivals Sporting CP for the first time since December. A new-look Boavista FC lineup was little match for a vibrant and energetic Benfica side that hardly put a foot wrong at the Estadio da Luz.

Boavista, desperately in need of points, could not afford to set up cautiously and manager Lito Vidigal came out with an attacking lineup for Saturday’s fixture, going with three at the back. The decision seemed to backfire, with Benfica punishing the Porto club with some effortless midfield passing and dangerous wing play. In the end, the scoreline was somewhat kind to a Boavista side that played the majority of the match in their own half.

Andrea Belotti, Evangelos Pavlídis and Orkun Kökçü were all able to get their names on the scoresheet, but this was a comprehensive performance from a Benfica side that seems to be hitting their stride at the perfect point of the season.

Sahir Bhojwani reports from the Estádio da Luz.

Andrea Belotti breaks the deadlock

Boavista managed to frustrate Benfica early on with neither side creating any clear chances over the first 20 mins. The Eagles found another gear at the midway point of the first half, with Zeki Amdouni coming close from a corner in the 23rd minute. Minutes later, Bruma broke free down the left wing and was able to provide a perfectly timed low pass to Belotti, who broke the deadlock with a tap-in from close range.

Benfica continued to pepper the goal, recording 15 shots (7 on target) in the first half, but Boavista managed to go into the half trailing by just one goal.

Reisinho sees red

A major turning point came in the 51st minutes when a desperate lunge from Miguel Reisinho landed no where close to the ball, and saw him take down Kökçü. After a VAR review, the referee had no choice but the send off the Boavista player, leaving a herculean task for his teammates.

Pavlidis scores his 17th goal of the the campaign

Pavlidis continued his fine form on Saturday. The Greek striker entered the game in the 68th minute. Within a couple of minutes, he had his name on the scoresheet, converting a low cross from fellow substitute Kerem Aktürkoğlu. His 17th goal of the campaign put Benfica in a commanding position going into the final stage of the game.

Late Kökçü’s penalty seals victory

With the game winding down, Boavista’s tired legs struggled to keep up with Benfica’s movement in the final third. Samuel Dahl did well to run on to a perfectly timed pass into the box in the 76th minute, only to be dragged down in the Salvador Agra. Orkun Kökçü stepped up to covert the penalty, ensuring the 58,000 plus home fans would be leaving happy.

Positives and negatives

(+) The goalkeeper position has been a problem area for Boavista throughout out the season. With established stoppers João Gonçalves and Luís Pires both suffering injuries early in the season, 17-year-old Tomé Sousa was handed the role at one stage of the season. If not for Czech goalkeeper Tomas Vaclik, Saturday’s scoreline could have been extremely embarrassing for the Panthers. Vaclik allowed three goals (one was a penalty), but it is important to note that Benfica peppered the keep with shot after shot, finishing with 31 total shots (14 on target).

(+) Had it not been for Boavista goalkeeper Tomas Vaclik’s stunning display, Andrea Belotti would have had at least two or three goals in the first half. Over 67 minutes, the Italian forward put himself in dangerous positions, executing the role of poacher perfectly. Pavlidis will likely remain the first choice striker, but there were plenty of positive to take from Belotti’s performance.

(-) There was so much expected of Miguel Reisinho coming into the 2024-25 campaign. The young Portuguese midfielder seemed to lose his head, and will surely be regretting his mistimed challenge at a critical stage of the match. A straight red card will see him miss a vital clash against Santa Clara next week.

Benfica: Samuel Soares, Leandro Santos, Nicolás Otamendi, Tomás Araújo, Samuel Dahl, Álvaro Carreras, Orkun Kökçü, Fredrik Aursnes, Andrea Belotti, Bruma, Zeki Amdouni

Boavista: Tomas Vaclik, Sidoine Fogning, Vitalii Lystsov, Rodrigo Abascal, Sebastián Pérez, Joel Silva, Miguel Reisinho, Marco van Ginkel, Salvador Agra, Moussa Koné, Róbert Bozenik

Goals:

[1-0] Andrea Belotti, 28’