After 14 games in a row (13 wins and one draw) without knowing what it was like to lose to Sp. Braga, Benfica in 2020 began to feel the weight of the competitive evolution of the warriors, getting stronger and interfering in the battle of the big three. There are already nine games without a win (six for the championship, two for the Portuguese Cup and one for the League Cup) and with that impressive record of seven defeats for the Luz, who face the Braga again on Saturday, in the 31st round of the I Liga.
Of the 132 games for the championship, the reds celebrated 88 wins, drew 28 and lost 16. And with that particularity, two of the three Braga victories in Luz have always been achieved in the last three years.
The beginning of the recent red cataclysm (or Minho’s reign, depending on perspective) was due to Rúben Amorim. On February 15, 2020, Bruno Lage’s Benfica received Minho’s team led by Amorim and lost (1-0). The goal was scored by João Palhinha, who was on loan from Sporting at Pedreira.
At the beginning of the next season, on August 11, another trip to Luz and another victory in Braga (3-2). Goals from Iuri Medeiros and Francisco Moura (two) nullified Seferovic’s brace and secured Carlos Carvalhal’s victory over Jorge Jesus. At that point, the draw meant they would also meet in the League Cup, a competition that recorded Minho’s third successive win (2-1), with Tormena and Abel Ruíz’s goals beating those of Pizzi (now a Sp. player) exceeded. braga).
In the second round of the 2020-21 championship, Jorge Jesus went to Braga to win (2-0), with goals from Rafa and Seferovic. At the end of that season they met in Jamor, in a final of the Portuguese Cup that smiled on the warriors of Carvalhal. Piázon and Ricardo Horta scored the goals that won the trophy to Sp. Braga.
The Braga would suffer one of the heaviest defeats in history shortly after, at the start of the 2021/22 I Liga (6-1). Ricardo Horta’s goal of honor was consumed by Benfica’s six: Grimaldo, Darwin Nuñez, Rafa Silva (two) and Everton (two). Despite this expressive triumph, the season did not go well for Luz. Finally, Jesus left and gave way to Nelson Veríssimo, who would go to Braga to suffer another defeat (3-2). Darwin and João Mário scored for Benfica, while Iuri Medeiros, André Horta and Vitinha scored the winning goals for Braga.
Already this season new setback in Pedreira. It was in fact the first (and heavy) defeat of Roger Schmidt’s Benfica (3-0), with goals from Abel Ruíz and two from Ricardo Horta, who had one foot with Luz at the start of the season and eventually stayed . in Brago. Just over a month later, Artur Jorge asserted himself as the great executioner of the Benfica fans and the German coach by eliminating them in the Portuguese Cup in the penalty shoot-out (5-4, after 1-1).
The third Portuguese-German game of the season takes place on Saturday at Estádio da Luz and despite Benfica leading the championship, Sp. Braga knows that to feed the (difficult) dream of becoming national champion for the first time, he needs to win and reduce the distance to three points.
Source: DN
