Wednesday 005 Champions League Nice vs Benfica

A focus match in the first leg of the third round of the 2025 Champions League qualifiers will be held at 3 a.m. this Wednesday at the Allianz Riviera Stadium in Nice, France. Ligue 1 powerhouse Nice will face Portuguese Super League giant Benfica at home. The two teams have faced each other five times in the history of European games, with Benfica having a clear advantage with 3 wins and 2 draws, and remained unbeaten by 2 wins and 1 draw away. This historical record gave the away team a little psychological advantage.

Nice returns to the Champions League stage after 15 years. The 4-4-2 high-pressure system created by coach Frank Hayes averaged 23.5 times per game, ranking second in the five major leagues. Front star Evan Gesander scored 5 goals in four games in the pre-season warm-up match, becoming the team's offensive core, but the main goalkeeper Burka's finger bruises, substitute goalkeeper Salgete's debut in the European game, and the main central defender Todibo's red card suspension resulted in a lot of loopholes in the defense. Although Sanson and Ziflen Toulam resumed training in the midfield, the lack of experience in the Champions League and injuries in key positions may become the "Achilles heel" of the Nice youth storm.

As the "king of qualifying matches" to win the Champions League twice, Benfica has won 21 wins and 3 draws in the Champions League qualifying round in the past 10 years, with an elimination rate of up to 92%. The 3-4-1-2 system created by coach Roger Schmidt has an average ball possession rate of 62.7%, and the core midfielder Enzo Fernandez's long pass success rate is 93%, accurately tearing the high-level defense line. Rafa Silva, the forward dual-core, and Di Maria have made 7 goals in the last three games, with fierce offensive firepower. Although the defense line in the Club World Cup group stage fluctuated slightly, it averaged only 0.6 goals per game in the last 10 games, and its defense efficiency was extremely high.

Based on the above analysis, Benfica is slightly better in overall strength, recent status and tactical system. Although Nice has a home court advantage, the unstable team's condition may become a constraint. It is expected that in this game, Benfica is expected to win a small away game with excellent offense and steady defense, or the two sides shake hands and make peace, and the score may be 1:2 or 1:1.