Our prediction for this Portugal Primeira Liga match:
Santa Clara
Match Time & Date:
15/02/2025
18:00
Prediction: 1-2
Benfica
Buoyed by the Champions League win over Monaco, Benfica will look to give fans yet another reason to celebrate when they face Santa Clara in the Primeira Liga round 22. The Eagles are now on a four-game winning run in all competitions, meaning that they head into Saturday’s clash high on confidence. Angel Di Maria is a major doubt after limping off with injury in the midweek game, while all Bah, Gouveia, Manu, and Renato Sanches remain in the recovery room.
Santa Clara, on the other hand, aim to build on back-to-back wins over Casa Pia and AVS. The hosts have been showing signs of improvement of late, but given their negative head-to-head record against Benfica, home win should not be considered. As Benfica have defeated Santa Clara in each of their last seven meetings in all competitions, we are tempted to bet on the capital club. Defender Pedro Pacheco should be the only absentee in the home team.
Highlighted Player (Angel di Maria):
Angel Di Maria is a professional footballer who played for Argentine side Rosario Central at the start of his senior career. The left-footed winger is very quick on the ball and he often makes life difficult for opposition defenders. After playing for Benfica between 2007 and 2010, the Argentine superstar signed for Real Madrid on 28 June, 2010 for a fee of €25 million + €11 million in bonuses.
Despite impressing with los Blancos in the 2013/2014 La Liga campaign, the club chiefs decided to sell him to Manchester United on 26 August, 2014. Di Maria was playing below expectations at Old Trafford and he scored three goals in 27 league games for the Red Devils.
In 2015 he moved to Paris Saint-Germain and he scored 10 goals in 29 league appearances for les Parisiens in the 2015/2016 Ligue 1 campaign. In 2014 he won the Champions League trophy with Real Madrid and that is considered the biggest success of his career. Angel Di Maria was born in Rosario on 14 February, 1988.
Highlighted Team (Benfica):
Member of the ‘Big Three’ clubs in Portugal alongside FC Porto and CP Sporting, Sport Lisboa e Benfica are the football club that has never been relegated from the Primeira Liga. The club is nicknamed Aguias because of the Eagle symbol atop the club’s crest. Benfica play their home games at the Estadio da Luz which replaced the original one in 2003 and which boasts the capacity of more than 64,000. Arguably the most successful club in Portugal, Benfica have won a record of 35 Primeira Liga titles and also a record 25 Taca de Liga and 7 Taca da Liga trophies.
Two-time European Cup winners, Benfica are the club known for their diligent work with youth players, many of which went on to make great careers abroad. The most prominent players to wear a Benfica shirt are legendary Eusebio, Manuel Bento, Jorge Tavares and most recently Javier Saviola, Nuno Gomes, David Luiz and Angel Di Maria.
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