Roger Schmidt’s mini-revolution was successful thanks to its captain. Nicolás Otamendi scored the only goal in Sunday’s game, allowing Benfica to beat Estoril (1-0) and return to triumph after four games without a win.
The captain of the red squad took the lead in a game of maximum pressure, which allowed the team to restore the four-point lead in the table against rivals FC Porto… who curiously today announced the extension of captain Pepe. And because great leaders emerge in the most difficult moments, the Argentine central defender showed what a world champion is made of.
Schmidt saw the dragons and the warriors from Minho approach in the 29th round of the I Liga and he made a mini-revolution in the team to shake up the dressing room, but he wasn’t completely convinced considering the turmoil from time to time. despite the weaknesses of the Estoril.
David Neres and João Neves came into the eleven and brought new ideas to the Benfica attack, but in an afternoon of wasted goal chances, the captain had to dissolve before another match failed by Rafa and Gonçalo Ramos and another missed penalty by João Mário came. A bid that was curiously validated by the VAR, an instrument that, according to the German coach, should not even exist in football.
Faced with the midfielder’s failure on the 11-yard mark (the third of the season in the I Liga), which drove the more than 60,000 fans in attendance at the overcrowded Estádio da Luz to despair, Otamendi had the head to make the 1 -0 in the 44th minute and order the team to rest in the advantage on the scoreboard.
The minimal advantage meant that Benfica could not rest, even though Estoril – defensively with a line of five – was unable to show any attacking football. The canarinhos got in the way as much as possible, but they didn’t show great arguments to win or reach Vlachodimos’ goal with danger, just a spectator. And if Ricardo Soares’ team only managed to score a shot in the first 45 minutes, the second half didn’t even, so the match ended without shots on target.
From the beginning was the history of the duels against the beleaguered Estoril, who added the 53rd defeat in a row to the Luz, where they have not won for over 70 years (1950-51).
Goal disallowed and ball hit the post
Schmidt attempted to condemn the game (and perhaps moralize the team and bench for the latter part of the championship) with the additions of Musa and Florentino (alternative, at the coach’s discretion). The Croatian striker shot the ball into the goal after a lot of individual work, but the move was declared invalid by Aursnes (playing on the right flank) at the start of the game.
It seemed increasingly clear that the final minutes would be one of great stress for the Eagles. Especially when João Mário lost another clear goal chance. The ball carelessly hit the post and so Otamendi’s goal earned three precious points with five games remaining, ending the dark cycle, with three losses and a draw.
Ricardo Soares congratulated Benfica on the deserved victory, but did not explain why he was unable to exploit the opposing turmoil. And if at the end of the first round the scenario of fighting for maintenance was far from the minds of the team coached by Nélson Veríssimo, it is now a reality, with only two points gained in the second round and 15th place – three points up there forces you to play play off maintenance/degradation.
Source: DN
