The head is in Europe and the heart is in the light :: Zerozero.pt

Between European matches and trying to put as much pressure as possible on its rival Sporting, Benfica does not have a rest in the tournament and receives, in Luz, the always difficult Moreirense, which was close to the top six and has already been used to create difficulties in the tops.

The environment in the eagles, at this stage, is not stable at all. The red team even beat Marseille (2-1) in the middle of the week and left good indicators, despite the results, in the two derbies with Sporting, but the atmosphere in the Estadio da Luz against the French was amazing, to the point that the fans booed the team and Roger Schmidt at the end of the match.

Since there was no introductory press conference by Benfica in this match – which is justified by the “closeness between the matches” – we can only speculate about the approach that the German coach will take in this match, but taking into account that the Europa League is the important point in this The stage is that some turnover is expected, maintaining the respect of the difficult opponent. In addition to the suspended Otamendi and Orsnes, names like Florentino Luis, Di Maria or even Rafa Silva could get a rest. We'll see how far the rotation goes.

A draw has been made for the first round @Catarina Morais / Kapta +

If we turn the page to Moreira de Conejos, we have a team that has surprised more than others, positively, in the Portuguese Championship this season, and which was even considered for European calculations at one point, despite losing in this race in the last few years. Despite this, they have already shown this season, in the first round (0-0) who know how to stop the eagle.

in Preview the matchRui Borges highlighted the importance of Moreirense remaining true to itself against an opponent of such strength, regardless of the opponent's choices. Therefore, no major changes in the law are expected from the 11th. The biggest doubts arise at centre-back, with Ofori and Alanzinho returning, but as Benfica are a team accustomed to possession, hard-working midfielders like Castro and Ruben Ismael could make sense.

Difficult canons

Historically, Benfica has a clear advantage in 33 duels with Moreirense, achieving 23 victories against only two defenders, but the scenario has changed slightly in recent seasons, and the evidence of this is that we got five draws in the last seven. Duels. Something to keep in mind.