Benfica vs Rangers prediction, odds and betting tips
Rangers will resume their Europa League campaign with a tricky tie against Benfica, the first leg of which is scheduled for Thursday.
Find the latest match odds for Benfica vs Rangers. All odds are provided by our best-reviewed football betting sites. Odds are subject to change.
- Benfica to win and under 3.5 goals - 7/5 with BoyleSports
- Both teams to score - 3/4 with bet365
- Angel Di Maria to score any time - 15/8 with BoyleSports
Both Benfica and Rangers wanted to head into this Europa League last-16 first leg on the back of a domestic victory. Neither could manage it.
Rangers warmed up for this trip to Lisbon with a 2-1 home defeat by Motherwell. That surprise loss brought to an end a nine-match winning streak in the Scottish Premiership.
The defeat was not too costly for Philippe Clement’s side as Celtic lost 2-0 to Heart of Midlothian. But it means their lead at the summit of the standings stands at a meagre two points.
Things were even worse for Benfica. They too had been in excellent form, taking 28 points from the last 30 on offer in the Primeira Liga.
That was before their trip to the Estadio do Dragao on Sunday. Benfica were humiliated by Porto, suffering a 5-0 demolition which knocked them off top spot.
Sporting CP, their cross-city rivals in the capital of Portugal, are now at the summit of the standings, while they also have a game in hand on Benfica.
Both managers, Clement of Rangers and Roger Schmidt of Benfica, will be keen for their teams to get those adverse results out of their systems as soon as possible.
That will be easier for Rangers than it will be for Benfica, but that is counterbalanced by the fact that the latter have home advantage.
They will probably need to make the most of it too. Ibrox remains a formidable place for travelling sides to go in European competition. Benfica will want to arrive there for next week’s second leg with a solid aggregate advantage behind them.
Rangers, on the contrary, would likely be content with a draw in Lisbon. That would perhaps make them the favourites to progress, notwithstanding the quality within Benfica’s ranks.
Benfica’s preparation for this game was less than ideal and Rangers will be looking to take advantage.
Rangers came so close to winning this tournament in 2022, when they lost the final on penalties to Eintracht Frankfurt. Clement will be aiming to go one better this time around.
His predecessor, Michael Beale, oversaw an important 1-0 victory over Real Betis on matchday one of the group stage.
With two wins and two draws, Clement did brilliantly to guide Rangers to top spot ahead of the Spanish side and Sparta Prague.
They are now preparing to face another storied European outfit, albeit one which underperformed in the group stage of the Champions League. Benfica only accumulated four points from a possible 18 against Inter, Real Sociedad and Red Bull Salzburg.
Benfica’s results have been broadly positive since the turn of the year, but it is notable that they have been beaten by both Porto and Sporting CP, the other two members of Portugal’s ‘big three’. That will give Rangers some hope, but avoiding defeat at the Estadio da Luz will be tough.
This looks set to be a tight game. With a second leg still to come, this is unlikely to be an end-to-end encounter.
The away goals rule is no longer in operation in European competition, a decision which continues to divide opinion. The removal of it arguably disincentives Rangers to try and score on Thursday.
But Clement’s team are still more than capable of causing Benfica problems here. Rangers are a direct side at times, with an emphasis on getting the ball forward quickly. They play with much greater width than they did when Beale was at the helm.
That should bring them some success against an opponent that will expect to dominate possession on home turf.
Keeping a clean sheet will be a big ask, however: Benfica have not drawn a blank in any of their last 15 home matches.
Weighing up all of the above, tipping goals at both ends looks like a smart choice at the odds available.
Most ageing superstars head to Saudi Arabia or the United States at the end of their careers at the highest level.
Angel Di Maria might still do that, of course, but last summer he chose the romantic option by rejoining Benfica, the club he represented as a young starlet between 2007 and 2010.
Di Maria has demonstrated his enduring class this term. The 36-year-old has scored 14 goals in 35 matches - a terrific tally for someone who is not even an out-and-out striker.
That tally includes two penalties against Toulouse in the first leg of Benfica’s knockout round play-off.
The fact Di Maria is his team’s designated penalty-taker makes this price look even more appealing ahead of Rangers’ visit.
- Location: Estadio da Luz, Lisbon, Portugal.
- Date and time: Thursday 7 March 2024, 8pm.
- How to watch: TNT Sports 1.
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