Liga Betclic: Benfica-Arouca X-ray

Benfica host Arouca from 6 pm this Sunday, April 13, on matchday 29 of the Liga Betclic, with the ambition of adding their 10th consecutive win in the competition, after taking over as sole leaders at the end of the previous round.

Having achieved their best winning streak of the season, Bruno Lage's side head to the Cathedral with their sights firmly set on another three points.

The Reds will face 12th-placed Arouca, who come to the Estádio da Luz on the back of two consecutive defeats and with just one win in their last eight matches.

Once again, the strength of the Benfica family will be key to continuing to capitalize on the home factor. At Estádio da Luz, the Eagles have 13 wins in 14 games and are the team in the league with the most points scored on home soil. For their part, the Arouquenses have been more effective away from home, having taken 15 of their 29 points away from Serra da Freita.

The history of matches between the teams in the league accentuates the differences in their form. Since Arouca's debut in the top flight of Portuguese football in the 2013/14 season, 15 games have been played, with the eagles winning on 13 occasions.

With just the 7 matches played at the Estádio da Luz, Benfica have an unbeaten record against their next opponents: 6 wins and 1 draw with a balance of 23 goals scored and 3 conceded.

In the reverse fixture, also after a 4-1 triumph over FC Porto in the Catedral, Bruno Lage's side won 0-2 at Arouca on matchday 12. Fontán, in his own net, and Di María, from the penalty spot, scored the goals that allowed the Reds to return to Lisbon with three points in the bag.

This Sunday's match, April 13, will see two of the eight teams in the Liga Betclic that tend to dominate their games go head-to-head. According to data provided by the Sofascore platform, Benfica have an average of 59.3% possession per game, compared to 52% for Arouca.

The high pass efficiency percentages per match (85% for the Reds and 81.7% for the Arouquenses) show how well both teams are building, but this balance dissipates when the ball approaches the two goals.

The 69 goals scored compared to 27 by their next opponents illustrate the Eagles' greater attacking power, which also outweighs their next opponents in the number of total shots (17 compared to 11.4) and shots on target per game (7 compared to 3.7), as well as the number of big chances created per 90 minutes: 4.2 compared to 2.1.

Also noteworthy is the strength of the Reds' aerial game, which, with 11 headed goals, leads this parameter among all the teams competing in the Liga Betclic.

Owners of the best defense in the competition, with 23 goals conceded against Vasco Seabra's team's 43, Benfica will go into the game as the team with the most tackles per game (18.5 against 16.3) and with a clear advantage over their opponents in terms of the percentage of duels won (51.8% against 48.4%) and balls recovered per game: 53.6 against 47.3.

Individually, Pavlidis is the Eagles' top scorer and jumped onto the podium of the league's top scorers with his hat-trick scored in the clássico last Sunday, April 6, which took his tally to 14 goals.

On Arouca's side, Jason and Henrique Araújo (a striker on loan from Benfica, who won't be able to play in Luz) share the top scorer spot with five goals apiece.

In terms of assists, Aktürkoğlu has 9 decisive passes and stands out among the Benfica players.