Benfica vs Besiktas Predictions & Betting Tips, Match Previews

Benfica have got their Portuguese Primeira Liga title defence off to a fairly good start so far. They beat Sporting Braga 3-0 in the Portuguese Super Cup at the beginning of August and have since won three of their four league matches to put themselves in 2nd place behind Sporting CP’s perfect record.

This has to be considered a good start to the campaign, considering they lost talented midfielder Renato Sanches and long term servant Nico Gaitan in the summer. Left winger Rafa Silva has come in to replace Gaitan, whilst Fulham striker Konstantinos Mitroglou has signed permanently and midfielder Danilo Barbosa is another useful arrival.

Benfica will feel that they have a great chance of making it through their Champions League group as well. They have been drawn in with the likes of Besiktas, Napoli and Dynamo Kiev. This is by no means an easy group to navigate, but the absence of a huge underdog and a top club such as Barcelona, means that this group is wide open. Getting a win on the board in their first home match will be a massive boost to them.

Besiktas won’t be a pushover though. They topped the Turkish Super Lig last season and, as such, earned qualification to the Champions League group stages for the first time since the 2009/10 season.

Their start to the new campaign could’ve gone better in all honesty though. They lost the Turkish Super Cup on penalties to Galatasaray in the middle of August and have since won two and drawn one of their Turkish Super Lig games. Their 2-2 draw at Konyaspor is a nod towards their fairly poor away record of just five wins in their last 14 outings on the road. In the Champions League they have lost five of their last eight away days.

Benfica, on the other hand, have won eight of their last ten home games in all competitions and eight of their last 13 at home in the Champions League. Overall they have a better quality squad than Besiktas as well and this, combined with their European history and decent start to the season, makes odds of 4/6 for a Benfica Win look good value to me. I’m going for that along with a 2-0 correct score prediction at 13/2.