Sporting Lisbon vs Benfica
16 April 2030hrs
Football – Portugal – Primeira Liga
Pick Over 2.5 goals
Bookmaker Boylesports
Odds: 4/7 odds taken 2000 GMT, Saturday 16 April
Sporting still have some hope they can chase down leaders Porto but can all but guarantee automatic qualification to next year’s Champions League when taking on their city rivals, Benfica.
Table of Contents
Sporting Lisbon – Can Sporting record a sixth straight win in the league to keep alive their title hopes?
It remains improbable and there is a good chance that the current six points between themselves and Porto at the top could well be nine come kick off in this one, but Sporting will feel they still have a small chance of retaining the league title they won last season. They are making a really good first of it in their current form which sees them looking for a sixth consecutive win. Sporting’s last loss in the league was at the end of January and the only points dropped since them have come away to Porto and Maritimo.
With five games left, they know they have to win each game and just hope that Porto begin to stutter. Perhaps a bigger priority, however, is ensuring they get the win here that would put them 12 points clear of Benfica and all but guarantee their place in the Champions League for another campaign.
Benfica Preview – Will Benfica avenge their defeat earlier in the season against Lisbon rivals?
Benfica’s gallant Champions League campaign came to an end in midweek following a brave 3-3 draw away to Liverpool which resulted in a 6-4 loss on aggregate. Benfica has a memorable run to reach the quarter-finals, seeing off Barcelona in the group stage and then knocking out Ajax in the last 16. It was a step too far against Premier League opposition.
Domestically, it’s not been so good. They are a distant third and a very below par first half of the season Jorge Jesus second reign in charge ended and he was replaced by Nelson Verissimo in December.
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Benfica’s last away game was a 3-2 reverse against Braga which is just their second loss on the road this season. No team has scored more away from home or in total, with Benfica scoring 73 in 29 games so far. Uruguayan striker Darwin Nunez has scored a bulk of those and is averaging a goal a game with 24 in the league alone. He has 32 in all competitions and is likely to be on the move this summer.
Benfica will clearly want to cut the gap between them and their rivals to six points in the race for second but is looking like they will have to go through qualifying to reach the group stages of next season’s Champions League.
Sporting Lisbon vs Benfica Betting Advice
There is never a meaningless Lisbon derby and the atmosphere will be a testament to that. The game features the best defence in the league against the best attack and whilst there is nine points between the teams there isn’t much to choose in terms of quality.
That said, it is Sporting who have held the upper hand in games between the two this season, winning both in the league and cup.
Key Facts – Sporting Lisbon vs Benfica Betting Tip
- Champions Sporting trail leaders Porto by six points with five games remaining in the season
- Benfica are the top scorers in both the league as a whole and away from home
- The last 10 Lisbon derbies have averaged 4.4 goals per game
Sporting don’t concede many at home but they are facing the best attacking side and the league’s top scorer here. With the last 10 derbies averaging more than four goals a game, back over 2.5 goals in this one.
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