.jpg "David Neres will undergo knee surgery for extended absence")
There has been no timeline given for the recovery time that Neres will need before he can return to action, but the injury is similar to the one sustained by Goncalo Guedes last season, which saw Guedes miss four months of action.
Neres is a big loss to a club that continues to struggle to score goals this season, having dropped points once again yesterday due to a lack of finish around the goal. He joins right back Alexander Bah and midfielder Orkun Kokcu in the infirmary.
Ederson, Jan Oblak, Nelson Semedo, Andre Almeida, Ezequiel Garay, Luisao, Ruben Dias, Nico Otamendi, Alex Grimaldo, Pablo Aimar, Rui Costa, Angel di Maria, Nico Gaitan, Eduardo Salvio, Simao Sabrosa, Rafa Silva, Oscar Cardozo, Nuno Gomes, Joao Felix and Jonas were the players chosen by the fans.
Ten players were present for the unveiling of the mural led by club President Rui Costa. Benfica's Estadio da Luz was opened on October 25, 2003 and was built from scratch as the main stadium of the Euro 2024 tournament being held in Portugal.
Benfica's chances to advance out of the group stage are currently slim and could be none when they face Real Sociedad away in Spain after suffering a flattering 1-0 loss at home to them just yesterday. Benfica have looked like a shell of last season's club that made a run to the quarterfinals, which some would say that a series of unfortunate events saw the club exit to last years finalists.
But what has happened to the club that has looked terrible in the competition? Looking at the players that currently remain with the club, you have Joao Mario and Rafa Silva, who are a shell of the players that put fright into clubs last season. The pair scored 11 goals between them.
The lack of usage of a true defensive midfielder has also proved costly, as the pair of Orkun Kokcu and Joao Neves are a far cry from last seasons generals Enzo Fernandez and Florentino, who commanded the middle of the field.
For all the accolades that Kokcu and Neves get for their league play, one needs to sit in place of Florentino, who, for reasons unknown, has fallen out of favour with his pig-headed bench boss Roger Schmidt.
Benfica have also failed to replace departing striker Goncalo Ramos, as the trio of Petar Musa, Casper Tengstedt, and Arthur Cabral have yet to step up and provide the pressure up front that Ramos became famous for.
The left back position is also a glaring hole in the squad, as the exit of Alex Grimaldo has cost the club some attacking flare, and the free kick specialist was also known for timely goals, which current replacements Juan Bernat and David Jurasek provide neither.
Benfica have three games to correct the ship, but an advancement from group play may be out of the club's hands at this point in the competition, they can only take it one game at a time and hope for a return to form quickly, but I won't hold my breathe, and neither should you at this juncture.
Benfica looks set to go into the game missing three of their regular starters with Angel di Maria, Orkun Kokcu and Alexander Bah all recovery from injuries, the trio have yet to complete a full training with the club since before the international break.
Benfica's medical department will re-evaluate the players today in Seixal but manager Roger Schmidt is in no hurry to use the trio unless they are given the green light to play as he looks to avoid a relapse in their injuries.
The club knows the importance of Tuesday's game and will look for others on the squad to step up in their absences.
Benfica got goals from four different marksmen with Joao Mario, Rafa Silva, Arthur Cabral and Tiago Gouveia all finding their names on the game sheet. With the victory Benfica now advance to the fourth round of the Taca de Portugal and await to find out their next opponents in this prestigious tournament.
Fenerbahce manager Ismail Kartal has presented the board with a list of midfielders he likes and highlighted on that list is the name of Florentino Luis. The 24 year old has been a long time favourite of the Turkish side but Benfica's current financial demands have continued to be a stumbling block in making the move possible.
Florentino is signed with Benfica until the summer of 2027 and has a buy clause of €120M, current Benfica bench boss Roger Schmidt is against moving the midfielder who he feels is a valuable part of the club.
Fenerbahce have their work cut out for them if they are to land this coveted player and do not seem to have the financial might to make this move happen.
.jpg "Benfica prepare for third round of Taca de Portugal encounter")
The match looks set to be a spectacle of football taking place in the small island of just over 53,000 people between two clubs with contrasting backgrounds but equal ambitions to advance.
Lusitania will be flying in over 40 sports venue assistants from the mainland of Portugal due to the logistics of hosting the defending league Champions and Portugal's most popular club at the Estadio John Paul II which normally holds 7,000 fans.
This will set the club back $20,000 to cover all accommodations for these workers but it will be worth the media coverage and free advertisement that the brand will receive from such a big match.
Benfica will be looking for nothing short then advancing to the next round and have their focus on making a run to the final to capture a trophy that has alluded them since the 2016/17 season.
Benfica acquired the talented Di Maria from Rosario Central in the summer of 2007 for €8M and the 35 year old spent three seasons with Benfica before departing and joining Real Madrid. Di Maria's career has taken him through Manchester United, PSG and Juventus before returning to Benfica this summer.
However since his arrival Cabral has struggled to find his footing and has yet to score or provide a helper in the limited time that he has appeared in games.
Benfica manager Roger Schmidt has continued to shuffle between Cabral, Petar Musa and Casper Tengstedt as he looks to find the piece that can replace what the club lost with departure of Ramos.
Cabral has appeared in 230 minutes of the 900 minutes that the club has played this season, which does not bode well for the striker as he looks to adapt to his new club and teammates.
Benfica need to give their summer acquisition regular playing minutes if we are to see what he can bring to the club as if Cabral is to build chemistry with his new teammates he will actually need to be on the pitch with them.
Benfica should look to include Cabral against the leagues minnows more regularly in the hopes that he can provide the club with what they first saw when acquiring the 25 year old this past summer.
All three players injuries are not deemed to be serious and the trio should not miss extended periods of time but the injuries are serious enough that both Bah and Di Maria will not report for international duty while Kokcu looks to be following suit.
Reports from Portugal have Benfica linked with a move to acquire U21 International Pedro Malheiro from Boavista. The 22 year old has been Boavista's regular starter at right back since half way through last season and has appeared in 60 games across all competitions for the northern Portugal club, scoring twice while providing seven helpers.
This move for Malheiro should be cost efficient and give the club the coverage that they are currently lacking since the departure of Gilberto in the summer to Brazil.
Roger Schmidt's starting XI revealed his foolishness as Benfica suffered a 1-0 defeat at the hands of last seasons Champions League finalists Inter Milan. The match showcased a lack of tactical awareness and poor decision-making on Schmidt's part, ultimately leading to the clubs downfall, as the German skipper seems to not have learned a dam thing from the clubs exit to these same Italians last season.
However, amidst the disappointment, goalkeeper Anatoliy Trubin looks to have emerged as a potential superstar between the posts as the young Ukrainian kept the score respectable, by turning aside seven shots with the majority on the difficult side which prevented the outcome from becoming embarrassing.
But getting back to Schmidt his team selection to commence the game was questionable from the start as his decision to not play a natural striker and start David Neres, Rafa Silva and Angel di Maria up front did not have the desired effect he seems to have hoped for. Then his choice to leave hard nosed defensive midfielder Florentinto on the sidelines in what was expected to be a tough encounter, left a gapping hole in the middle of the field that was exploited all second half.
Benfica's unwillingness to find a reliable back up at right back during the summer transfer window also did not help the teams cause as the club was forced to play young center back Tomas Araujo in place of Alexander Bah who went down 23 minutes into the game, ending the clubs attacking prowess from that side of the field for the remainder of the encounter.
Schmidt has been slowly losing his shine as his lack of foresight further highlights his inability to read the flow of play accurately and make the appropriate changes, the injury to Bah should have seen the club change to a 3-4-3, this way utilizing the strengths of the players he had on the field, instead Schmidt continues to show us that he is not the smartest guy in the room... again.
For Benfica supporters, this match holds great significance. It represents an opportunity to exorcise last seasons demons and to see Benfica's Champions League campaign get back on track after they suffered an opening round game loss to RB Salzburg to kick off this seasons competition.
Benfica are coming off a victory over fierce rivals FC Porto this past weekend and hope to carry the momentum of that victory into tomorrows contest against Inter.
