Pacos de Ferreira – Benfica

We expect that both outsiders and league leaders will score in a head-to-head encounter

The rescheduled match in the 20th round of the Portuguese championship will be a classic encounter between the first and last teams in the standings. Benfica will soon defend their country's honour in the Champions League play-offs against Brugge and therefore the organisers of the league decided to postpone this match to an earlier date. It would seem that the difference in class between the teams is comparable to the gap, but the result can be expected to be unpredictable. At least the underdogs are now showing positive momentum, while the favourites are not playing as brilliantly as they did in the second half of 2022. Bookmakers consider the visitors to be the clear favourites for the match, on which you can bet at odds of 1.21. Pasos de Ferreira ended last season with a long losing streak. At the same time, the 11th final position shows that the team is not a classic underdog. At the same time, the club's current league title defeat is thorough. Surprisingly, the two points from the draws with Casa Pia and Trofense in mid-September and early October remained Pasos de Ferreira's sole possession at the end of 14 rounds until the last day of 2022. January, however, saw the division's outsider start much more interestingly. The first match of the year saw a draw against Chaviche, a week later they beat Rio Ave and last Saturday's defeat against Braga only to be conceded a 90+8 minute goal. In the Champions League, Benfica qualified first in their group alongside PSG and Juventus, with the opponents in the last eight being Brugge. In the Portuguese league, the Eagles have been in the lead since the opening rounds and now sit four points ahead of second-placed Braga. However, in the second half of December, Benfica began to suffer a decline in form, including a 0-3 defeat at the hands of Braga. The Eagles crushed Santa Clara last time out, which could well translate into some slackness in the upcoming game against an outsider. Pasos de Ferreira and Benfica have exchanged goals three times in their last six face-offs. We'll bet that the home side will be able to squeeze in at least a goal on the pitch.