Benfica - Celtic Matchday 3 CL Preview

Matchday 3 is upon of us, and like many of you i expected Benfica to have at least have 3 points. Having played the number 1 seed and number 4 seed, Benfica should have least have beaten the weaker 4th seed. But that wasn't the case. Not only did we go to San Siro and lost as predicted, we also hosted Shaktar an lost. So, 2 games in and we have yet to put any points up on the standings. Quick rundown through the standings:

Shakhtar 2-0-0 6pts
Celtic 1-1-0 3pts
Milan 1-1-0 3pts
Benfica 0-2-0 0pts

Shaktar has maximum points, having beaten both Celtic and Benfica, Celtic and Milan share second place with 3 points with the edge going to the Scots due to having beaten Milan in Matchday 2 ( head to head tie-breaker), Benfica rounds up the group in last place. Shaktar travels to Milan, with nothing to lose, Milan need the win to get back control. Shaktar has done what they set out to do, beat the 2 teams who would be their main competition. A loss in Milan would still leave them in good shape, but i believe they will play to win, as they are a talented side with good quality players. Celtic comes to Lisbon trying to stay in the run, a loss wouldn't hurt them that bad, but they need to tally points if they are to keep up. Benfica is in desperate need of a win, a loss would most likely see them out of next round, while a tie would be just as bad. At this point it would all Benfica should be looking to do is to qualify to the next round, UEFA cup shouldn't even be a tought at this point.
For this tomorrow's clash Camacho called up the following payers:
Keepers: Quim, Butt - Butt makes his return to the bench after a short injury spell to his back. Defenders: Luisão, Léo, Zoro, Edcarlos, Miguel Vítor e Luis Filipe - Nelson continues to be hurt Edcarlos is coming off an injury and may not be 100%.
Midfielders: Katsouranis, Maxi Pereira, Cristian Rodriguez, Rui Costa, Nuno Assis, Binya and Romeu Ribeiro - No surprises on the Midfield.
Forwards: Di Maria, Cardozo, Adu and Bergessio - With Nuno Gomes being hurt, Bergessio has made the call up list despite of his poor performance on saturday, Mantorras is left out, the Angolan international is still not 100%.

My projected line-up
Quim
Maxi, Luisao, Katsouranis and Leo - Maxi will return to the right side where he is a lot more dependable than Luis Felipe - Katsouranis was tested out in the back with Luisao on the tuesdays training session, he will most likely start next to Luisao, there is a slight chance that Edcarlos might be able to go, but it is unlikely.
In the midfield: Binya will once again be in the defensive midfield role, Rodriguez and Di Maria will be on the flanks while Rui Costa will be in the middle as the organizer.
Up front Cardozo will play in the center forward position while Bergessio will play in a supportive role, a position he is more familiar with and that suits his worker characteristics. Cardozo will definetely be a great target in the box as he is tall and his aerial game is decent, look for him to knock balls down to oncoming players
There is another variation i'd consider - switching Bergessio with Di Maria.
Off the bench look for Adu to be the first option for Camacho, Nuno Assis and Romeu Ribeiro could also be options, late in the game.
The Scots have refused to practice on the game pitch since they arrived in Lisbon, chosing to practice at Estadio Nacional, the venue that saw them win their first European title in the late sixties, oddly enough that team was nicknamed the Lisbon Lions - no relation to the other Lions of Lisbon, even though the Uniforms are very similar.
It should be a very close game with the edge going to Benfica for being home, and for desperately needing the 3 points, Camacho has already expressed that thhe team will be going at it from the intial whistle. Let's hope for a good result.
My prediction is 2-1 Benfica