After a 2 week break, Benfica returns to action this Saturday against Vitoria de Setubal. The first game of the of the year is coincidentally the last game of the first half of the season. Setubal is currently in 5th place with 23 points, coming from 5 wins, 1 loss and 8 ties. Setubal tops the league along with Porto with the least amount of losses, a pretty impressive stat, considering that their only loss came at the hands of league leaders Porto.
Benfica has already met Setubal this season, in a match where Setubal defeated a second string Benfica for the Carlsberg Cup. For Benfica, a win is the only acceptable result, having already cut Porto's lead from 10 points to 7 points right before the holiday break, Benfica needs to continue to turn up wins in order to maintain the pressure on Porto.
For this Saturday's match, Camacho has called the following players:
Keepers: Quim and Butt.
Defenders: Luís Filipe, Léo, Ruben Lima, David Luiz, Luisão, Nelson and Edcarlos.
Midfielders: Maxi, Katsouranis, Petit, Rui Costa, Rodriguez, Di María, Adu and Nuno Assis.
Forwards: Cardozo and Mantorras.
Nuno Gomes misses the call up, as he continues to recover from an abdominal injury that currently ails him. Binya is also absent, as he serves his one game suspension for cumulative yellows.
The junior left back, Ruben Lima makes his game roster debut, Leo did not practice this morning due to a cold and the junior is called up as a not only as a precautionary measure but also as a back up.
Having trimmed the squad to 23 players, a more manageable number of players, Camacho enters a new stage of the season, the squad is now more to his liking and while he awaits the much needed 3 reinforcements he will have to make due with what he currently has.
With Nuno Gomes being hurt, any possibility of Camacho going with 2 forwards is very remote. So here's the starting 11 i'm anticipating
Quim in goal; Nelson, Luisao, David Luiz and Leo; Katsouranis and Petit in front of the defense.
DiMaria(Assis), Rui Costa and Rodriguez supporting Cardozo. I might be going out on a limb predicting DiMaria to start on the right, but hey, it seems logical. Di Maria has been growing from game to game and Benfica needs his attacking game, the other alternative would be Assis. Maxi brings more consistency to the the midfield, but when you are playing with 2 defensive mids, why not play with another attack minded player? That is just my opinion, I'm sure Camacho will surprise us all.
I'm also thinking about Petit, and how well he's recovered. If he hasn't made a full recovery don't count on him to play, In which case we would see Maxi in the middle along with Katsouranis, if the tactical system is the 4-2-3-1.
This will a very hard game for Benfica, Setubal is a well organized team with skilled players that will be playing for the win in front of their home crowd. As for Benfica, they will need to win this game above all as a win will more than send a message to the opposition, it will serve as a momentum builder to what will prove to be a challenging month, with a few chances to gain on Porto.
Keys to the game
- Team Response - After a 2 week layoff the team has lost the competing rhythm(playing every weekend), and while the layoff has served to recharge physical and emotional levels it can also be detrimental to the teams flow.
- Leo - Leo's father has undergone heart surgery this week and that has to be one of the things in Leos mind. He is also suffering from a cold how will that affect his performance? Leo's left wing incursions are often times plays that will create danger, we'll see if the cold works as debilitating factor.
- Good Start - A good start is often times the determining factor for this type of a game, the longer Benfica keeps the game close the more Setubal will grow in confidence.
- Camacho's game read - It is important that if changes need to be made they are made early, if the 4-2-3-1 is not working then Camacho needs to make adjustments, if Rui Costa is dropping back too much and leaving Cardozo unsupported then Camacho needs to make adjustments right away and not wait for the 75th minute.
A must win game that Benfica will rise to, and give Benfiquista's title hopes.
Thursday, January 3, 2008
Vitoria de Setubal - Benfica Preview
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2 comments:
Well its a new year, we should be able to start out on the right foot.
Starting 11
**Yawn**
Back four will be the usual with the exception of Leo, I think we see Luis Filipe or Edcarlos take his place due to illness. Katso and Petit at d-mid while Maxi and Rodriguez support Rui Costa in the middle. Cardozo on an island up front. **Yawn**
We will see Di Maria in at 60, Adu at 75-80, Mantorras at 80-85.
Camacho will not change this line-up as he seems to think that this should be his setup. Like many coaches, he favors a more defensive posture when playing teams that are closer to the top of the table. I think they should change it up a bit, if you keep coming with the same look, other teams will get your number.
Also I think it shows a lack of faith in the back four.
I read an article some time ago about two coaches that brought their teams out of serie b by playing attacking football, sometimes even leaving 3 in the back and putting 3 up front. Maybe not relevant to Benfica right now, but my point is we've got to take risks by playing for the win from the start of the game.
Slow game with the lone goal form Di Maria.
Prediction 1-1
ah - remember when Mourinho used to do that? he would call the starting 11, and then he would mention the subs that would be coming in? he did that in England and he got in trouble.. But you're right - Benfica's line up is so predictable, i almost want to throw in a twist in my previews just to make things exciting.
I think David Luiz would play on the left before Luis Felipe, or maybe Maxi, after all he has played every other position.
King drop me a line i want to ask you something.
Cheers
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