Benfica vs Bayern Munich

Benfica and Bayern Munich will square off at the Estadio da Luz in an exciting top-of-the-table UEFA Champions League Group E encounter.

Benfica staged a massive Champions League upset last time out, putting Barcelona to the sword at this venue (3-0) to bounce back from an underwhelming goalless away draw with Dynamo Kyiv on Matchday 1. However, the hosts’ hopes of keeping what would be a club-record fourth consecutive Champions League clean sheet will be on the line against a Bayern Munich side they’ve failed to beat in all ten previous European H2Hs (D3, L7). Yet, the Portuguese powerhouse can call upon a brace of 3-0 Champions League home victories in their most recent two outings at the Estadio da Luz. Another victory accompanied by a blank sheet would see Benfica rack up a three-match winning home streak without conceding in European football for the first time since October 1991.

In the meantime, Bayern Munich have made light work of their Group E engagements so far, beating Barcelona and Dynamo Kyiv by 3+ goals ‘to nil’ to take control of the proceedings in this section early on. The ‘Bavarians’ head into this encounter riding on a club-record 19-game unbeaten away run in the Champions League (W15, D4), netting a staggering 54 goals in that sequence. Topically, since the start of last season, Julian Nagelsmann’s men have scored an average of 3.2 goals per Champions League fixture. What’s more, they take the field on the back of a 5-1 thrashing of Bayer Leverkusen in the Bundesliga, with each of those five strikes coming before half-time! Robert Lewandowski and co have bagged 3+ goals in nine of their 11 competitive outings this season, which could raise a few concerns in the home camp.