Barcelona to qualify for UCL round of 16 with win over Benfica
FC Barcelona vs SL Benfica - 23/11/2021
6067
Xavi’s return to Barcelona as manager didn’t provide the big scoreline win many fans hoped for at the weekend. Barcelona only managed a 1-0 victory over Espanyol in the Catalan Derby thanks to a Memphis Depay penalty.
The result outweighed the performance, however. Now, on Tuesday night, Barcelona host Benfica at Camp Nou with the chance to seal progression to the Champions League round of 16.
Benfica head into the fixture with four points from 12. They sit in third place in the group after back-to-back losses to Bayern Munich in Group E. Benfica are two points behind Barcelona ahead of Tuesday night’s clash in Catalonia.
A win for Benfica would put them ahead of Barcelona and in pole position to qualify in second place. A loss to the Blaugrana would end Benfica’s chances of qualifying for the round of 16.
Benfica should go into the fixture with hope of a win at Camp Nou. Why? The Eagles humiliated Barcelona in the reverse fixture 3-0 thanks to goals from Darwin Nunez (two) and Rafa Silva.
The Eagles go into Tuesday night’s crunch tie on the back of two straight wins on the domestic front. Barcelona are unbeaten in three straight games. The stakes are high for both teams at Camp Nou.
Barcelona still have a number of injuries going into the match on Tuesday. Ansu Fati and Pedri are both ruled out of the fixture. Serginho Dest is a doubt due to a back problem. Sergio Aguero is ruled out for the foreseeable future with a heart issue and Martin Braithwaite may not be fit to play.
It was revealed this week that Barcelona want to offload Philippe Coutinho, which is something they have attempted to do for three straight seasons.
However, Xavi stated Coutinho is a part of his plans. News around Samuel Umtiti isn’t quite so good. Barcelona want to cancel his contract.
Jorge Jesus’s Benfica have several injury issues as well. Lucas Verissimo is ruled out of the match with a knee injury. Joao Mario is a doubt following a back problem. The foursome of Rodrigo Pinto, Andre Almeida, Gil Dias, and Valentino Lazaro are all doubts currently to make the squad.
Barcelona have improved in the Champions League since losing to Benfica 3-0 on matchday 2. Xavi could pick up his second win as Barcelona boss versus the Eagles.
On Tuesday night, the Blaugrana should claim a win at home to seal their place in the round of 16. Like Barcelona’s 1-0 win over Espanyol, it should be a low-scoring game with under 2.5 goals scored.
Home team
Away team
Pred
Correct score
Avg. goals
Weather conditions
Coef.
Score
Live
coef.
UCL
403327
1
1 - 0
2.05
13°
1.60
1.60
4.25
6.05
-1
1
1
0 - 0(0 - 0)
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