Benfica go into Thursday's Taca de Portugal second leg against Estoril with a 3-1 first leg advantage as they look to clinch their place in the final for only the fifth time in the past 15 years. Benfica have had an extremely disappointing season to date and will look to hang onto their advantage to play for the season ending trophy which may be their only hope for some hardware this season with the league championship far from reach. Benfica would face the winners of the FC Porto-Braga showdown, as they try to capture their 27th Taca de Portugal championship in club history.
Benfica manager Jorge Jesus addressed the clubs goaltending change after the Rio Ave game that saw Helton Leite move into the number one role ahead of previous starter Vlachodimos over the past few weeks. Jesus stated that the club can only play one goalie and felt that Helton has earned the chance to be the clubs number one keeper over Vlachodimos who has been the clubs number one since his arrival in the summer of 2018. Jesus said that Vlachodimos' return to goal will all depend on the play of Helton and to date he feels that the 30 year old keeper has been solid in net for Benfica since taking over the role. The move for those that know Jesus was only a matter of time, as the manager has always liked larger goalies and Helton stands at 1.96 meters which is 0.05 meters taller then Vlachodimos.
According to reports from Portugal, Benfica are said to be interested in Braga defensive midfielder Al Musrati. The 24 year old has caught the eye of Benfica manager Jorge Jesus with his performances this season and is currently being evaluated by the club. Benfica have not had any formal discussions with Braga who signed Musrati on a free transfer this past summer away from Guimaraes but Musrati spent last season on loan at Rio Ave under the tutelage of current Braga manager Carlos Carvalhal who had a hand in bringing over the Libyan international. Musrati has appeared in 31 games across all competitions for Braga this season, scoring twice while setting up three others. Benfica are aware that Murati is signed until the summer of 2024 and has a €30M buy out clause which would make any negotiation difficult.
