Thursday, June 19

Sports Mole previews Friday's Club World Cup clash between Benfica and Auckland City, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.

After battling back to draw their opening Club World Cup match, Benfica will seek nothing less than maximum points on Friday, when they meet Group C minnows Auckland City in Orlando.

The Portuguese giants stole a point from Boca Juniors on matchday one, while their Kiwi counterparts suffered a record-breaking loss and looked well out of their depth.

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Match preview

Having trailed by two goals just before the break, Benfica valiantly rallied in their first Club World Cup fixture, with plenty of help from two experienced Argentinians saving the day. 

Against compatriots Boca Juniors, Angel Di Maria cut his side's deficit with a penalty won by captain Nicolas Otamendi in first-half stoppage time, then Otamendi scored an equaliser on 84 minutes.

A boyhood fan of Boca’s arch-rivals River Plate, the veteran defender pointedly celebrated in front of the opposition fans, having put in a true captain's performance by playing a part in both goals and making a match-leading nine clearances.

Though Benfica finished with 10 men at Hard Rock Stadium, following Andrea Belotti's reckless red card, Boca had just nine players left at the final whistle, as the points were ultimately shared after a hard-fought clash. 

Aiming to advance from a three-way battle for qualification from Group C, Bruno Lage's side certainly possess a potent attack: though they narrowly lost out to city rivals Sporting Lisbon for the title, they scored 84 goals in Portugal's Primeira Liga last season.

In fact, the only team to prevent them from scoring so far this calendar year was Barcelona in the UEFA Champions League, way back in March. 

So, they should be confident of ending a rare four-game winless streak by putting several goals past brave but brittle Auckland City.

Part-timers Auckland suffered the heaviest defeat in Club World Cup history in their tournament opener, losing 10-0 to German giants Bayern Munich.

The plucky New Zealanders were ruthlessly pulled apart by the six-time European champions in Cincinnati, conceding four times in the first 20 minutes of a one-sided contest. 

Occupying 5,074th place in the global club rankings, the Navy Blues have now lost eight straight matches at FIFA's top tournament since their improbable third-placed finish in 2014.

Meanwhile, in last year's Intercontinental Cup, Auckland were thumped 6-2 by Al-Ain in the first round, so being drawn in such a strong group this summer was always going to prove a test too far.

Ivan Vicelich's side may be Oceania's best team, given a continental record of 13 OFC Champions League crowns in less than two decades, but they are clearly mismatched against Europe's elite.

It will surely be a case of damage limitation, then, when they take to the field on Friday.

Benfica Club World Cup form:

D

Benfica form (all competitions):

W W D D L D

Auckland City Club World Cup form:

L

Auckland City form (all competitions):

L D W W W L

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Team News

After leaving out regular starters Orkun Kokcu and Kerem Akturkoglu against Boca Juniors, it remains to be seen if Benfica boss Bruno Lage will recall both or either.

Appearing as a substitute, Kokcu played with strapping, so Portugal's leading chance creator last season may not be risked ahead of next week's big clash with Bayern Munich; one or two other stars might also be rested.

Still without long-term absentees Alexander Bah and Manu Silva, who are now joined on the sidelines by suspended striker Andrea Belotti, the Eagles will have an otherwise full squad available. 

Vangelis Pavlidis is set to spearhead their attack: the Greece striker scored 19 goals and set up seven in the Primeira Liga last term. Meanwhile, Auckland City's chief threat comes from well-travelled forward Myer Bevan.

The latter should be supported by New Zealand futsal international Dylan Manickum, who was named player of the tournament in the 2025 OFC Champions League. 

Starting behind a likely five-man defence, goalkeeper Conor Tracey could be in for a busy shift between the posts.

Benfica possible starting lineup:

Trubin; Dahl, A. Silva, Otamendi, Carreras; Aursnes, Luis, Sanches; Akturkoglu, Pavlidis, Schjelderup

Auckland City possible starting lineup:

Tracey; Murati, Boxall, Den Heijer, Mitchell, Lobo; De Vries, Garriga, Ilich, Manickum; Bevan

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We say: Benfica 6-0 Auckland City

 

As goal difference could prove crucial in determining who finishes inside Group C's top two, Benfica cannot afford to miss this chance to fill their boots.

Auckland City may have learned from their chastening double-figures defeat last week, but they will still be powerless to halt the red tide. 

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.

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