Benfica Trounces Boavista 6-1

Benfica obtained an important win this Sunday, not only for the clear and justified victory over Boavista but also because FC Porto tied, and Sporting lost against Braga. Benfica is now 4 points behind leaders FC Porto, and is 4 points ahead of their arch rivals Sporting.

Camacho started the following 11:
Quim in goal, Luis Felipe, Luisao, Katsouranis and Leo in defense. In the midfield; Rodriguez, Binya, Rui Costa and Maxi. While upfront it was Nuno Gomes supporting Cardozo. This was the line up i had projected for this game, it seems the most logical line up at this point in time. Katsouranis is playing well next to Luisao, and the old saying applies here - if it isn't broken don't fix it. Maxi's inclusion in the midfield provides a balance to a midfield who has Rui Costa and Rodriguez as clear offensive minded players. Up front, Nuno Gomes offered support to Cardozo which is how Benfica is going to take full advantage of the Paraguay international. Cardozo is by no means a player who can play by himself against the 2 central defenders, he needs a more mobile player to support him, and that player is Nuno Gomes. Off course it's very easy to come to this conclusion after Sunday's result, but , this is what is the most logical way of playing, taking into consideration Nuno Gomes style of play. Nuno Gomes is not a pure center forward, he is not the killer instinct forward. He is a player who plays best when playing with another forward or playing 1-2s with the attacking midfielders, this is Nuno Gomes' role. On to the game. Benfica started off well, taking control and initiative of the game, before a Boavista team that started 3 speedy attacking forwards- Kalanga, Fary and Mateus. Jaime Pacheco, clearly set his team in hope that these three could hurt Benfica on the counter. Benfica scored their first goal at the 18 minute mark after a good combination between Rui Costa, Nuno Gomes and Cardozo, with Rui Costa assisting Cardozo, who would touch it past the keeper and open the score sheet for Benfica. Up until this point Benfica had been the team who had dominated the most, with a couple clear wasted chances to increase their tally right before the half, chances that were met with a few signs of life by Boavista also, threatening Quim's goal on a couple occasions with distant shots. Half time came and while Benfica had dominated the first half, i had the feeling that Boavista was far from being defeated. The start of the second half showed just that, with Boavista scoring the tying goal on the 57 minute, right after Ze Kalanga had picked up his second yellow card. Benfica reacted well and would tie 9 minutes later by Maxi, who scored his first goal with a Benfica jersey. From then on Benfica took full advantage of the numerical advantage and would go on a scoring rampage. In the 66 minute Rodriguez made it 3-1 with a header to the far side of the goal. Camacho then substituted Maxi for Di Maria in an attempt to go for the jugular. The Argentinian international started well and would be involved in Benfica's 4th goal, a goal which he riffled the ball towards goal and the ball "ricocheted" off a Boavista player into the goal. 80 minutes had gone by and the scoreboard seemed to be done for the night, but that wasn't to be the case. Nuno Gomes added 2 more goals, 85th min and 88th minute, with the second one coming from the penalty spot. Benfica would have the chance to make it 7, if it wasn't for Bergessio, who had come in for Cardozo, missing a penalty kick. Camacho burned his last substitution with the entrance of Romeu Ribeiro for Rui Costa. The game would end up 6-1, with a clear victory for Benfica who dominated most of the game, and took full advantage of their numerical advantage.

Couple of observations, Rui Costa continues to prove that at 35 you can still be a very influential player, he controlled all of Benfica's game and orchestrated the good performance by Benfica clearly the man of the match for me.
Binya, there was doubts as to how the camerooonian was going to react to the criticism after tuesday's horror tackle. He had a very discreet good performance, he was not as hasty in his challenges and was able to control his aggressiveness while being very effective. While in prior games he might of been remembered for a tackle that could have gotten him ejected, on Sunday Binya flew under the radar, playing a very good tactical game and doing what is expected of a player in that position. I hope he has learned from Tuesday and that this is the turn of a new leaf for him. Speaking of challenges, Ricardo Silva's challenge on Cardozo, which would eventually cause Cardozo to come out, is a challenge for a red card. Bergessio continues to not be able to prove his worth to Camacho. He asked to take a penalty in hopes that would bring him out of his slump, and would permit the goalie to save it. He is either going to a very bad slump or he is not the player Benfica thought he was. Luis Felipe, the way he gets beat on the Boavista goal is incredible and reveals a bit of ingenuity on his part by not fouling the very fast Mateus in the midfield.The only negative from today's game for me was the fact that Freddy Adu did not play. With the lop sided score, i would have expected Camacho to throw Freddy in, it was a non-pressure situation, and we would have been able to have seen Freddy play in is natural position or maybe in a playmaking position. Maybe next time.

Important victory for Benfica, no only for the "W" but also for what their opponents did and how they managed to take advantage of this.

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