Chelsea vs Benfica, 2025-26 UEFA Champions League, League Phase
· UEFA Champions League
90'+6': João PedroChelsea edge Benfica to spoil Mourinho's return
Jose Mourinho's Stamford Bridge homecoming ended in defeat as Chelsea got their Champions League season going at the second attempt with a 1-0 win over Benfica.
Match Commentary
- 0': Lineups are announced and players are warming up.
- 0': First Half begins.
- 1': Alejandro Garnacho (Chelsea) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
- 1': Foul by Fredrik Aursnes (Benfica).
- 1': Enzo Fernández (Chelsea) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
- 1': Foul by Dodi Lukébakio (Benfica).
- 4': Foul by Malo Gusto (Chelsea).
- 4': Heorhii Sudakov (Benfica) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
- 4': Attempt missed. Enzo Fernández (Chelsea) right footed shot from outside the box misses to the left.
- 8': Attempt saved. Dodi Lukébakio (Benfica) left footed shot from the left side of the box is saved in the bottom left corner by Robert Sánchez (Chelsea). Assisted by Heorhii Sudakov.
- 8': Corner, Benfica. Conceded by Robert Sánchez.
- 11': Attempt missed. Alejandro Garnacho (Chelsea) right footed shot from the left side of the box is close, but misses to the left. Assisted by Pedro Neto with a cross.
- 15': Attempt missed. Heorhii Sudakov (Benfica) right footed shot from outside the box is close, but misses to the left. Assisted by Vangelis Pavlidis.
- 16': Attempt saved. Richard Ríos (Benfica) left footed shot from the centre of the box is saved in the centre of the goal by Robert Sánchez (Chelsea). Assisted by Dodi Lukébakio.
- 17': Attempt missed. Pedro Neto (Chelsea) left footed shot from outside the box is close, but misses to the left. Assisted by Moisés Caicedo.
- 18': Own Goal by Richard Ríos, Benfica. Chelsea 1, Benfica 0.
- 19': Foul by Benoît Badiashile (Chelsea).
- 19': Vangelis Pavlidis (Benfica) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
- 21': Attempt missed. Vangelis Pavlidis (Benfica) right footed shot from the right side of the six yard box is close, but misses to the right.
- 22': Attempt saved. Facundo Buonanotte (Chelsea) left footed shot from the right side of the box is saved in the centre of the goal by Anatoliy Trubin (Benfica). Assisted by Pedro Neto.
- 26': Dodi Lukébakio (Benfica) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
- 26': Foul by Marc Cucurella (Chelsea).
- 27': Enzo Fernández (Chelsea) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
- 27': Foul by Dodi Lukébakio (Benfica).
- 28': Foul by Malo Gusto (Chelsea).
- 28': Heorhii Sudakov (Benfica) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
- 33': Foul by Enzo Fernández (Chelsea).
- 33': Richard Ríos (Benfica) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
- 34': Facundo Buonanotte (Chelsea) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
- 34': Foul by Enzo Barrenechea (Benfica).
- 34': Enzo Barrenechea (Benfica) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
- 36': Facundo Buonanotte (Chelsea) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
- 36': Foul by Fredrik Aursnes (Benfica).
- 37': Foul by Fredrik Aursnes (Benfica).
- 37': Moisés Caicedo (Chelsea) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
- 37': Foul by Malo Gusto (Chelsea).
- 37': Heorhii Sudakov (Benfica) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
- 39': Corner, Chelsea. Conceded by Anatoliy Trubin.
- 41': Enzo Fernández (Chelsea) wins a free kick on the left wing.
- 41': Foul by Richard Ríos (Benfica).
- 42': Offside, Chelsea. Benoît Badiashile is caught offside.
- 44': Enzo Fernández (Chelsea) wins a free kick on the left wing.
- 44': Foul by António Silva (Benfica).
- 44': Attempt saved. Tyrique George (Chelsea) right footed shot from the centre of the box is saved in the bottom left corner by Anatoliy Trubin (Benfica). Assisted by Marc Cucurella.
- 45': Fourth official has announced 1 minutes of added time.
- 45'+1': Foul by Facundo Buonanotte (Chelsea).
- 45'+1': Fredrik Aursnes (Benfica) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
- 45'+1': Enzo Fernández (Chelsea) is shown the yellow card.
- 45'+2': Alejandro Garnacho (Chelsea) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
- 45'+2': Foul by Fredrik Aursnes (Benfica).
- 45'+2': First Half ends, Chelsea 1, Benfica 0.
- 45': Second Half begins Chelsea 1, Benfica 0.
- 46': Enzo Barrenechea (Benfica) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
- 46': Foul by Facundo Buonanotte (Chelsea).
- 46': Facundo Buonanotte (Chelsea) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
- 48': Offside, Benfica. Fredrik Aursnes is caught offside.
- 49': Facundo Buonanotte (Chelsea) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
- 49': Foul by Richard Ríos (Benfica).
- 49': Richard Ríos (Benfica) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
- 53': Offside, Benfica. Fredrik Aursnes is caught offside.
- 54': Substitution, Chelsea. Estêvão replaces Facundo Buonanotte.
- 55': Corner, Benfica. Conceded by Alejandro Garnacho.
- 56': Corner, Chelsea. Conceded by Nicolás Otamendi.
- 59': Attempt missed. Alejandro Garnacho (Chelsea) right footed shot from outside the box is high and wide to the right. Assisted by Marc Cucurella following a fast break.
- 60': Attempt blocked. Pedro Neto (Chelsea) left footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked. Assisted by Moisés Caicedo.
- 61': Substitution, Chelsea. João Pedro replaces Tyrique George.
- 61': Substitution, Chelsea. Jamie Gittens replaces Alejandro Garnacho.
- 62': Enzo Barrenechea (Benfica) wins a free kick on the left wing.
- 62': Foul by João Pedro (Chelsea).
- 62': João Pedro (Chelsea) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
- 63': Foul by Fredrik Aursnes (Benfica).
- 63': Moisés Caicedo (Chelsea) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
- 63': Fredrik Aursnes (Benfica) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
- 65': Delay in match because of an injury Dodi Lukébakio (Benfica).
- 66': Delay over. They are ready to continue.
- 66': Foul by Nicolás Otamendi (Benfica).
- 66': João Pedro (Chelsea) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
- 70': Corner, Chelsea. Conceded by António Silva.
- 70': Delay in match because of an injury António Silva (Benfica).
- 72': Delay over. They are ready to continue.
- 73': Substitution, Benfica. Tomás Araújo replaces António Silva because of an injury.
- 75': Foul by João Pedro (Chelsea).
- 75': Nicolás Otamendi (Benfica) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
- 77': Substitution, Benfica. Andreas Schjelderup replaces Dodi Lukébakio.
- 77': Substitution, Benfica. Franjo Ivanovic replaces Heorhii Sudakov.
- 77': Substitution, Benfica. Leandro Barreiro replaces Richard Ríos.
- 79': Attempt saved. Estêvão (Chelsea) header from the centre of the box is saved in the top centre of the goal by Anatoliy Trubin (Benfica). Assisted by Enzo Fernández with a through ball.
- 80': Foul by Amar Dedic (Benfica).
- 80': Jamie Gittens (Chelsea) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
- 81': Substitution, Chelsea. Reece James replaces Malo Gusto.
- 81': Substitution, Chelsea. Josh Acheampong replaces Benoît Badiashile.
- 83': Attempt blocked. Franjo Ivanovic (Benfica) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked. Assisted by Samuel Dahl.
- 83': Attempt blocked. Fredrik Aursnes (Benfica) left footed shot from a difficult angle on the left is blocked. Assisted by Vangelis Pavlidis.
- 83': Corner, Benfica. Conceded by Reece James.
- 83': Nicolás Otamendi (Benfica) is shown the yellow card.
- 84': Attempt missed. Franjo Ivanovic (Benfica) left footed shot from the right side of the box is close, but misses to the right. Assisted by Samuel Dahl following a corner.
- 87': Corner, Benfica. Conceded by Josh Acheampong.
- 87': Attempt saved. Nicolás Otamendi (Benfica) right footed shot from the centre of the box is saved in the centre of the goal by Robert Sánchez (Chelsea).
- 88': Foul by Pedro Neto (Chelsea).
- 88': Tomás Araújo (Benfica) wins a free kick on the right wing.
- 88': Tomás Araújo (Benfica) is shown the yellow card.
- 89': Substitution, Benfica. Henrique Araújo replaces Fredrik Aursnes.
- 90': Fourth official has announced 6 minutes of added time.
- 90'+1': Corner, Benfica. Conceded by Moisés Caicedo.
- 90'+1': Attempt missed. Enzo Barrenechea (Benfica) header from the left side of the six yard box is too high. Assisted by Samuel Dahl with a cross following a corner.
- 90'+2': Foul by Enzo Fernández (Chelsea).
- 90'+2': Leandro Barreiro (Benfica) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
- 90'+3': Foul by Samuel Dahl (Benfica).
- 90'+3': Reece James (Chelsea) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
- 90'+6': Dangerous play by João Pedro (Chelsea).
- 90'+6': Leandro Barreiro (Benfica) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
- 90'+6': Second yellow card to João Pedro (Chelsea) for dangerous play.
- 90'+8': Delay in match (Chelsea).
- 90'+8': Delay over. They are ready to continue.
- 90'+8': Second Half ends, Chelsea 1, Benfica 0.
- 0': Match ends, Chelsea 1, Benfica 0.
Statistics
 BEN |
CHE |
|
|---|---|---|
| 14 | Fouls | 13 |
| 5 | Yellow Cards | 2 |
| 0 | Red Cards | 1 |
| 2 | Offsides | 1 |
| 5 | Corner Kicks | 3 |
| 3 | Saves | 3 |
| 43.9 | Possession | 56.1 |
| 9 | SHOTS | 8 |
| 3 | ON GOAL | 3 |
| 0.3 | On Target % | 0.4 |
| 0 | Penalty Goals | 0 |
| 0 | Penalty Kicks Taken | 0 |
| 331 | Accurate Passes | 453 |
| 402 | Passes | 514 |
| 0.8 | Pass Completion % | 0.9 |
| 3 | Accurate Crosses | 3 |
| 11 | Crosses | 14 |
| 0.3 | Cross % | 0.2 |
| 34 | Long Balls | 34 |
| 10 | Accurate Long Balls | 22 |
| 0.3 | Long Balls % | 0.6 |
| 2 | Blocked Shots | 1 |
| 13 | Effective Tackles | 18 |
| 17 | Tackles | 29 |
| 0.8 | Tackle % | 0.6 |
| 11 | Interceptions | 9 |
| 22 | Effective Clearances | 20 |
| 22 | Clearances | 20 |
Game Information
Competition: UEFA Champions League
Venue: Stamford Bridge
Location: London, England
Attendance: 38,636
Venue: Stamford Bridge
Location: London, England
Attendance: 38,636
UEFA Champions League Standings
| # | TEAM | GP | GD | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bayern Munich | 2 | +6 | 6 |
| 2 | Real Madrid | 2 | +6 | 6 |
| 3 | Paris Saint-Germain | 2 | +5 | 6 |
| 4 | Internazionale | 2 | +5 | 6 |
Line-Ups
Chelsea (4-2-3-1)
| No. | Name |
|---|---|
| 1 | Robert Sánchez (GK) |
| 5 | Benoît Badiashile |
| 23 | Trevoh Chalobah |
| 3 | Marc Cucurella |
| 27 | Malo Gusto |
| 40 | Facundo Buonanotte  |
| 25 | Moisés Caicedo |
| 8 | Enzo Fernández |
| 32 | Tyrique George |
| 49 | Alejandro Garnacho |
| 7 | Pedro Neto |
Benfica (4-3-3)
| No. | Name |
|---|---|
| 1 | Anatoliy Trubin (GK) |
| 30 | Nicolás Otamendi |
| 4 | António Silva |
| 26 | Samuel Dahl |
| 17 | Amar Dedic |
| 5 | Enzo Barrenechea |
| 8 | Fredrik Aursnes |
| 20 | Richard Ríos |
| 14 | Vangelis Pavlidis |
| 10 | Georgiy Sudakov |
| 11 | Dodi Lukebakio |
UEFA Champions League News
Mourinho: Isak's move to Liverpool wasn't easy
Jose Mourinho reflects on Alexander Isak's transfer to Liverpool over the summer.
Guardiola: I'm incredibly confident in Man City
Pep Guardiola expressed confidence in his team's recent performances as Manchester City prepare to face Villarreal.
Howe: Newcastle have a strong chance of beating Benfica
Eddie Howe welcomed the challenge of facing José Mourinho and expressed confidence in Newcastle ahead of their clash with Benfica.
Arteta plays down Premier League title talk
Mikel Arteta brushes off questions about Arsenal's chances of winning the Premier League.
Arsenal's Arteta on Simeone's Liverpool fan clash: 'Not easy'
Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta said managers have a responsibility to set an example ahead of Diego Simeone's first match back in England after he clashed with Liverpool supporters.