Benfica Nacional X-ray Liga Betclic Football

This Saturday, March 8, Benfica returns to the Liga Betclic against Nacional, in a match scheduled for 6:00 pm at the Estádio da Luz.

The Alvinegros, who were beaten in the first half of the season (0-2), are the eagles' opponents on matchday 25 of the Championship, and the record is largely in favor of the Reds. In 49 games, the Glorioso have won 38 (78%) and drawn 7 (14%).

Restricting the figures to La Liga matches, Benfica's lead remains the same. In 41 matches, they came out on top in 31 (76%), splitting the points on 6 occasions (15%). At Estádio da Luz, in two dozen matches, the Reds have won 16 (80%) and drawn 4 (20%).

Of the 97 goals scored by the Reds against Nacional (2.7 per game in the league), 52 were scored in the Cathedral, where Benfica conceded only 9 goals. The most significant result at home came with Bruno Lage at the helm.

In 2018/19, the season that culminated in the club winning its 37th national title, Benfica thrashed Nacional 10-0, a match also marked by Florentino's first team debut.

With matchday 24 away to Gil Vicente scheduled for March 28, the eagles have one less game to play than the team from Madeira. Owners of the best defense (18 goals conceded) and one of the best attacks in the competition (53 goals), the Reds face the 12th-placed team (23 goals scored and 32 conceded), who beat Famalicão in the last round.

Benfica came into this match with 59.8% possession, better than Nacional (45.9%). With an average of 17.1 shots per game, the eagles also have a better rate in this parameter, compared to 12.9 shots by the alvinegros.

The difference remains in shots on goal, a ranking led by Benfica (6.8 against 3.9), according to data from the Sofascore platform.

In terms of passing efficiency, the Reds prevail over their rivals (85.1% against 77.2%), as is the case with dribbling per game (9.4 against 7). On the offensive side, the average number of corners per match is favorable (7.4 against 4.1), as well as accurate long balls (average of 26.6 against 22).

On the other hand, the visitors have an advantage in terms of the effectiveness of their crosses (28.7% compared to 25.5% for the Eagles).

Benfica also have a rate of 51.1% of duels won per game, compared to 50.9% for their next opponents.

With an average of 19.1 clearances per game, Bruno Lage's men have the edge over their opponents, who have 17.2. On average, Benfica recover 54.1 balls per game, compared to 51.8 for Nacional.

In individual terms, Bruma and Pavlidis are the top scorers for the Reds, with 8 goals each. Aktürkoğlu stands out in terms of assists (7) and shots on target (1.1 per game). Di María has an average of 2.9 shots per game, leading this ranking for the eagles, and sharing the key passes item with Kökcü (2.2). Bruma, with an average of 2.6 successful dribbles per match, is the Benfica player with the highest success rate in this parameter.

On the Nacional side, José Gomes, Daniel Penha, Dudu and Isaac are all top scorers with 3 goals. Luís Esteves leads the team in assists (3), shots and key passes per game (2 and 1.5 respectively), while Gustavo Garcia is the author of the highest number of successful dribbles per match (1.3), among players with at least 50% appearances in the competition.