Benfica's quest for their 8th Taca da Liga cup is now over after Guimaraes won and Benfica earned their third straight draw in group play to finish runner up to the Minho club. Benfica who had a two goal lead over Setubal going into the final ten minutes on goals from Raul de Tomas and Jota had their Taca da Liga game end 2-2 and become the only club of last seasons final four to not advance once again to the semi-final round. Benfica did find out today their path in the Taca de Portugal as they get set to take on Rio Ave in mid January at the Estadio da Luz and the winner of this encounter will move on to the two leg semi-final against the winners of the Famalicao/P.Ferreira encounter. Benfica who have won 29 Taca de Portugal Cups to date could face arch rivals FC Porto if all the cards fall into place in the Finals.
Benfica go into their final Taca de Liga game needing help if the are to move onto the final four. Benfica travel to Setubal looking for a comfortable victory with an inexperienced squad and hoping that Guimaraes stumble in their match against Covilha. Benfica will play Setubal away at 8:00pm WEST.
They will dress 18 players from the list below.
Keepers- Mile Svilar, Ivan Zlobin
Defenders- Tomas Tavares, Jardel, Nuno Tavares, Morato, Pedro Alvaro, Joao Ferreira
Midfielders- Chiquinho, Caio Lucas, Davis Tavares, Tiago Dantas, Gedson Fernandes, Florentino
Forwards- Carlos Vinicius, Seferovic, Raul de Tomas, Jota, Goncalo Ramos
Raul de Tomas' summer move from Real Madrid to Benfica for €20M has yet to pane out for both the striker and club. De Tomas has yet to register a league goal or an assist in seven appearances and has scored just twice in 16 games across all competitions. Benfica manager Bruno Lage is set at this time on selecting strikers Carlos Vinicius and Haris Seferovic ahead of this summers key addition, so much so that De Tomas has even lost his spot on the substitute bench in the teams last four matches. The Spanish striker is said to be frustrated with his lack of playing time and according to Spanish newspaper El Confidencial would be open to a loan move back to Spain once the transfer window opens in January. The loan move is easier said then done with De Tomas as his €2M annual salary would be a deterrent for many clubs in Spain. Bruno Lage would also be reluctant to allow the striker to leave in January as any injury to Vinicius or Seferovic would present a problem for the club if it does not have an adequate striking option to replace either man in their fight for the Portuguese crown. The 25 year old has had a tough adjustment to Portuguese football but the striker will need to continue to work and await his next opportunity and prove to himself, the club and the fans that his almost record breaking signing was not in vein.
