As pre-season winds down for Benfica and the new season approaches, it is time to take a look back at what Rui Vitoria has done in his first month in charge of Benfica, especially with the International Champions Cup. Overall, it has been a positive experience, in my own opinion. We do not know when exactly he was officially contacted by Benfica, but chances are he probably did not expect to spend his summer in America with Benfica, so some of the bad can still be ironed out before the season begins. Yes, Benfica did lose three games and won only one, on penalties, but the overall performances by Benfica were not bad and showed us fans what can be possible with the right starting eleven.
These were the teams that were selected by Rui Vitoria for each game and the subs that were brought on.
Benfica v PSG:
Julio Cesar
Silvio
Luisao
Jardel
Eliseu
Samaris
Pizzi
Gaitan
Talisca
Lima
Jonas
Subs:
Paulo Lopes for Julio Cesar
Nelson Oliveira for Lima
Marcal for Eliseu
Lisandro Lopez for Jardel
Bryan Cristante for Samaris
Goncalo Guedes for Talisca
Lindelof for Luisao
So I have to be honest in saying I did not get to catch the Benfica v PSG game so I can't fully comment on the performance of the team and of each player individually, but if you would like to hear about that, check out my friends at Benfica Podcast on Twitter and YouTube. I was however, able to catch the rest of the games and tried to make an overall assessment of what I saw.
Benfica v Fiorentina:
Julio Cesar
Andre Almeida
Luisao
Jardel
Eliseu
Fejsa
Samaris
Gaitan
Talisca
Jonas
Jonathan Rodriguez
Subs:
Silvio for Eliseu
Ola John for Samaris
Pizzi for Talisca
Bryan Cristante for Jonathan Rodriguez
Mehdi Carcela for Fejsa
Lisandro Lopez for Jonas
Nelson Oliveira for Gaitan
This, for me, is probably what a typical line up will look like for the upcoming season. I think the defense may see changes, especially for the left back and right back positions, and possibly seeing Lisandro Lopez more depending on the opponent. But Samaris, Gaitan, Talisca, and Jonas are all probably going to be starters along with Julio Cesar and Luisao. Benfica played pretty well in this game, showing glimpses of a really talented team. What we as fans are starting to see, is what Rui Vitoria is capable of, what his ideas are for the team. He has the full backs pushing forward, often times being ahead of the wingers or at least at the same line, but also having forward players tracking back to defend. Samaris especially is good at being defensive, which is his role as a midfielder anyway but it is something we are starting to see more. I know it was more evident in this game when Luisao was sent off, being able to drop even farther back and to essentially become a defender for the remaining of the game but also to continue to send balls forward and create the movement needed. This change is probably going to be more evident as the season goes on, I would imagine that Samaris will continue to cover for the defense when needed but also be able to run forward to deliver passes or take headers when we need a tall player to be up in the box.
I also also extremely impressed with Jonathan Rodriguez. I don't know if he will get a starting eleven spot or even if he will be on the bench all season long, but I think if he continues to develop over time, and becomes more and more of a player who can be relied on, it would be hard to not use him. He's extremely quick, which is probably his age showing, but he's also much like Lima in how he plays. Of course Lima being ten years older than Jonathan means that he has ten years of experience, several of those being under Jorge Jesus where he was really able to develop his play. With Jonathan it will take time to really figure out his role and what he is best at, which thankfully Rui Vitoria will hopefully be able to start doing now, molding him into the player Benfica need him to be.
Talisca also has looked promising this preseason. It seems as if he is also taking on a bit of a different role, by finessing his passes as opposed to always looking for goals. It doesn't mean he hasn't taken chances, or that he will stop trying to score, but I think what it means is, we will see him doing more than just scoring and it could be very good for Benfica in the long term. It's only been 4 games and a month, so we can't completely see what is to become of these players individually but it means that Rui Vitoria still can make this team even better.
Substitution wise, it is easier to point out the negatives which for me, were by far Ola John and Nelson Oliveira. It has been said by pretty much everyone, these two do not have a spot on Benfica, it's very clear. Neither of them have been productive at all during the ICC, unlike others who at least showed hints of talent or promises of what is to come. Ola John and Nelson had neither of that, which is disappointing as Ola John has talent but has never seemed to fully tap into it and Nelson never quite lived up to the potential he could have had.
Even though Benfica lost this game on a missed penalty from Carcela in the shootout, I think the overall performance was positive.
Benfica v NYRB:
Ederson
Nelson Semedo
Luisao
Lisandro Lopez
Silvio
Samaris
Pizzi
Ola John
Carcela
Taarabt
Jonathan Rodriguez
Subs:
Filip Djurcic for Taarabt
Goncalo Guedes for Ola John
Talisca for Carcela
Jonas for Pizzi
Gaitan for Jonathan Rodriguez
Marcal for Luisao
Teixeira for Silvio
This was a game that was both good and bad at times. It was a great first half from Benfica, with a fantastic strike from Pizzi who had a pretty great game overall. His strike is what we can probably expect from him, scoring goals from outside the box, not often enough but when he does, they are going to be pretty amazing. Pizzi is a player who may not have a lot of fancy moves or who is the best player on the team, but who is able to adapt to what is needed and he works extremely hard. He has a great link up with Samaris and will probably be a player that Rui Vitoria relies on during the season because you always sort of know what to expect from him and thus, becomes a reliable type player.
On the defense, Nelson Semedo and Licha Lopez both had great games. Nelson Semedo was a surprise for most fans, as I don't think we expected him to do as well as he did but it gives us more options at the right back spot if he can continue to play that well. Will he be our starter, probably not. But can he be called up for games when we give the starter a break? Most likely and if he grows and develops, could be our future right back if he stays with Benfica. As for Licha, he had a great game. He offers more than what Jardel can and that's not to knock what Jardel is capable of. He has been a great player for us, especially last season, but we also have to be realistic. He isn't going to get much better. Licha is a young player, who by learning from Lusiao is going to improve with age. He is better with his feet than Jardel is and while making mistakes, they can be fixed before the season begins. I think Rui Vitoria is going to have a tough choice of whether he picks Licha or Jardel to start alongside Luisao and it's a decision we as fans will have to wait on.
Ederson was a bit of a disappointment, I think some of that is nervousness and probably wanting to impress and thus making mistakes he hopefully doesn't make normally. I'm sure he will work those out and by working with Julio Cesar and Paulo Lopes, will gain that bit of confidence. He won't play every game, but in the games he does, he needs to be at his best and not making little mistakes or not knowing how to get the ball out, but if he is able to improved, could be a reliable player to have for the future.
I thought Taarabt was good at times, obviously his fitness is what needs to be worked on but he almost scored an incredibly goal from about 30 m out but he definitely looked sluggish. He has talent, no doubt about that, but can he get fit and can he be able to play an entire match is the question. With only a few weeks to go, it's going to be tough but I think Benfica can do it, it is just a question of when. Carcela also had a great game, he is super quick, super talented as well and I definitely see him playing a major role this season, it's also just a question of whether or not he will be a starter or a bench player. It's all up in the air right now.
Overall I thought Djuricic was good, he has shown his potential and for me, was a surprise as I was not expecting him to be at the level he was. But interestingly was the only game he played so I don't know if he has a place on this team or not. Guedes was good, as usual, being quick and pacy with a lot of vision there, the only issue is that he may not be at the level we need so he will most likely either go on loan or go back to the B team. Although we may get surprised and he may make the final list of first team players.
Benfica v Club America:
Julio Cesar
Andrea Almeida
Luisao
Jardel
Eliseu
Fejsa
Pizzi
Gaitan
Carcela
Talisca
Jonas
Subs:
Marcal for Eliseu
Nuno Santos for Carcela
Jonathan Rodriguez for Jonas
Andreas Samaris for Pizzi
Bryan Cristante for Fejsa
Silvio for Andre Almeida
Ola John for Luisao
Ederson for Julio Cesar
Joao Teixeira for Talisca
This game, to put it bluntly, was awful. I know a lot is probably down to the elevation and the fact that many of these players struggled to adapt. Had this game been anywhere else, Benfica probably would have won and blown Club America away. The positives that I can take away were that Pizzi, Gaitan, Carcela, and Talisca all looked really good. Nuno Santos as a sub looked pretty great, was a bright surprise for myself and I think that it is always nice to see youth players getting minutes and impressing the coach. We saw Cristante play, after having been left out against NYRB and it was just too little playing time to really see what is going on. I think he probably will be loaned out, and so far he's been positive about his Benfica experience so hopefully Benfica will not do wrong by him and will instead hold onto him and develop him. It's a strange situation but one that will, in the end, be resolved tastefully.
There isn't really much to say about this game, sadly but I think had Benfica had more time to train and perhaps a few days to rest, it could have been a different outcome. Hopefully playing the Eusebio Cup will show that this team is capable of so much more than what we saw with the Club America game.
Overall:
There are positives here. I've seen a few fans who are already in negative mode, calling for Rui Vitoria to be fired, that he isn't good enough for Benfica and that this team sucks. But that is as pessimistic as you can get. We just saw that there will most likely be new signings once back in Lisbon and I think that the staff knows who is going to be sold, who will be loaned, and where the news players will go when bought. This team is far from complete and far from the best level possible but are they as bad as what others think? No of course not. There are also journalists and fellow writers who are doubting Benfica because of what both Sporting and Porto have done signing wise, but I don't think there is any one team for me that has stood out to be incredible or that has blown everyone away by being incredibly. At this moment the playing field is level and it is only once the season starts that we will see who pulls ahead and who lags.
This team is a new team. Even if most of the players are the same, it's a new team with a new coach. The ideas are going to change, players will be used differently, and it will be a Benfica we haven't seen before. That has risk involved with it, but it is a risk that will hopefully have a reward. We can't predict the future as fans, we can't see what will happen in May, but I'm confident that Rui Vitoria will be able to command this team and to be able to challenge for the title. The next challenges are the Eusebio Cup and the Supertaça against Sporting August 9th and Rui Vitoria has already said those two teams will be different. For me, the team that plays Sporting will be the team closest to what is the starting eleven. I can't read his mind, but if I could predict a line up for that game, it would go something like this:
Julio Cesar
Silvio
Luisao
Jardel
Eliseu
Samaris
Pizzi
Gaitan
Carcela/Talisca (debating on who perhaps plays against Monterey)
Jonas
Jonathan Rodriguez.
We will see what happens, but if Benfica were to win the Supertaça, it would be a massive boost to go into the season with nothing but positivity that this team will win the tricampeao.
Benfica v PSG:
Julio Cesar
Silvio
Luisao
Jardel
Eliseu
Samaris
Pizzi
Gaitan
Talisca
Lima
Jonas
Subs:
Paulo Lopes for Julio Cesar
Nelson Oliveira for Lima
Marcal for Eliseu
Lisandro Lopez for Jardel
Bryan Cristante for Samaris
Goncalo Guedes for Talisca
Lindelof for Luisao
So I have to be honest in saying I did not get to catch the Benfica v PSG game so I can't fully comment on the performance of the team and of each player individually, but if you would like to hear about that, check out my friends at Benfica Podcast on Twitter and YouTube. I was however, able to catch the rest of the games and tried to make an overall assessment of what I saw.
Benfica v Fiorentina:
Julio Cesar
Andre Almeida
Luisao
Jardel
Eliseu
Fejsa
Samaris
Gaitan
Talisca
Jonas
Jonathan Rodriguez
Subs:
Silvio for Eliseu
Ola John for Samaris
Pizzi for Talisca
Bryan Cristante for Jonathan Rodriguez
Mehdi Carcela for Fejsa
Lisandro Lopez for Jonas
Nelson Oliveira for Gaitan
This, for me, is probably what a typical line up will look like for the upcoming season. I think the defense may see changes, especially for the left back and right back positions, and possibly seeing Lisandro Lopez more depending on the opponent. But Samaris, Gaitan, Talisca, and Jonas are all probably going to be starters along with Julio Cesar and Luisao. Benfica played pretty well in this game, showing glimpses of a really talented team. What we as fans are starting to see, is what Rui Vitoria is capable of, what his ideas are for the team. He has the full backs pushing forward, often times being ahead of the wingers or at least at the same line, but also having forward players tracking back to defend. Samaris especially is good at being defensive, which is his role as a midfielder anyway but it is something we are starting to see more. I know it was more evident in this game when Luisao was sent off, being able to drop even farther back and to essentially become a defender for the remaining of the game but also to continue to send balls forward and create the movement needed. This change is probably going to be more evident as the season goes on, I would imagine that Samaris will continue to cover for the defense when needed but also be able to run forward to deliver passes or take headers when we need a tall player to be up in the box.
I also also extremely impressed with Jonathan Rodriguez. I don't know if he will get a starting eleven spot or even if he will be on the bench all season long, but I think if he continues to develop over time, and becomes more and more of a player who can be relied on, it would be hard to not use him. He's extremely quick, which is probably his age showing, but he's also much like Lima in how he plays. Of course Lima being ten years older than Jonathan means that he has ten years of experience, several of those being under Jorge Jesus where he was really able to develop his play. With Jonathan it will take time to really figure out his role and what he is best at, which thankfully Rui Vitoria will hopefully be able to start doing now, molding him into the player Benfica need him to be.
Talisca also has looked promising this preseason. It seems as if he is also taking on a bit of a different role, by finessing his passes as opposed to always looking for goals. It doesn't mean he hasn't taken chances, or that he will stop trying to score, but I think what it means is, we will see him doing more than just scoring and it could be very good for Benfica in the long term. It's only been 4 games and a month, so we can't completely see what is to become of these players individually but it means that Rui Vitoria still can make this team even better.
Substitution wise, it is easier to point out the negatives which for me, were by far Ola John and Nelson Oliveira. It has been said by pretty much everyone, these two do not have a spot on Benfica, it's very clear. Neither of them have been productive at all during the ICC, unlike others who at least showed hints of talent or promises of what is to come. Ola John and Nelson had neither of that, which is disappointing as Ola John has talent but has never seemed to fully tap into it and Nelson never quite lived up to the potential he could have had.
Even though Benfica lost this game on a missed penalty from Carcela in the shootout, I think the overall performance was positive.
Benfica v NYRB:
Ederson
Nelson Semedo
Luisao
Lisandro Lopez
Silvio
Samaris
Pizzi
Ola John
Carcela
Taarabt
Jonathan Rodriguez
Subs:
Filip Djurcic for Taarabt
Goncalo Guedes for Ola John
Talisca for Carcela
Jonas for Pizzi
Gaitan for Jonathan Rodriguez
Marcal for Luisao
Teixeira for Silvio
This was a game that was both good and bad at times. It was a great first half from Benfica, with a fantastic strike from Pizzi who had a pretty great game overall. His strike is what we can probably expect from him, scoring goals from outside the box, not often enough but when he does, they are going to be pretty amazing. Pizzi is a player who may not have a lot of fancy moves or who is the best player on the team, but who is able to adapt to what is needed and he works extremely hard. He has a great link up with Samaris and will probably be a player that Rui Vitoria relies on during the season because you always sort of know what to expect from him and thus, becomes a reliable type player.
On the defense, Nelson Semedo and Licha Lopez both had great games. Nelson Semedo was a surprise for most fans, as I don't think we expected him to do as well as he did but it gives us more options at the right back spot if he can continue to play that well. Will he be our starter, probably not. But can he be called up for games when we give the starter a break? Most likely and if he grows and develops, could be our future right back if he stays with Benfica. As for Licha, he had a great game. He offers more than what Jardel can and that's not to knock what Jardel is capable of. He has been a great player for us, especially last season, but we also have to be realistic. He isn't going to get much better. Licha is a young player, who by learning from Lusiao is going to improve with age. He is better with his feet than Jardel is and while making mistakes, they can be fixed before the season begins. I think Rui Vitoria is going to have a tough choice of whether he picks Licha or Jardel to start alongside Luisao and it's a decision we as fans will have to wait on.
Ederson was a bit of a disappointment, I think some of that is nervousness and probably wanting to impress and thus making mistakes he hopefully doesn't make normally. I'm sure he will work those out and by working with Julio Cesar and Paulo Lopes, will gain that bit of confidence. He won't play every game, but in the games he does, he needs to be at his best and not making little mistakes or not knowing how to get the ball out, but if he is able to improved, could be a reliable player to have for the future.
I thought Taarabt was good at times, obviously his fitness is what needs to be worked on but he almost scored an incredibly goal from about 30 m out but he definitely looked sluggish. He has talent, no doubt about that, but can he get fit and can he be able to play an entire match is the question. With only a few weeks to go, it's going to be tough but I think Benfica can do it, it is just a question of when. Carcela also had a great game, he is super quick, super talented as well and I definitely see him playing a major role this season, it's also just a question of whether or not he will be a starter or a bench player. It's all up in the air right now.
Overall I thought Djuricic was good, he has shown his potential and for me, was a surprise as I was not expecting him to be at the level he was. But interestingly was the only game he played so I don't know if he has a place on this team or not. Guedes was good, as usual, being quick and pacy with a lot of vision there, the only issue is that he may not be at the level we need so he will most likely either go on loan or go back to the B team. Although we may get surprised and he may make the final list of first team players.
Benfica v Club America:
Julio Cesar
Andrea Almeida
Luisao
Jardel
Eliseu
Fejsa
Pizzi
Gaitan
Carcela
Talisca
Jonas
Subs:
Marcal for Eliseu
Nuno Santos for Carcela
Jonathan Rodriguez for Jonas
Andreas Samaris for Pizzi
Bryan Cristante for Fejsa
Silvio for Andre Almeida
Ola John for Luisao
Ederson for Julio Cesar
Joao Teixeira for Talisca
This game, to put it bluntly, was awful. I know a lot is probably down to the elevation and the fact that many of these players struggled to adapt. Had this game been anywhere else, Benfica probably would have won and blown Club America away. The positives that I can take away were that Pizzi, Gaitan, Carcela, and Talisca all looked really good. Nuno Santos as a sub looked pretty great, was a bright surprise for myself and I think that it is always nice to see youth players getting minutes and impressing the coach. We saw Cristante play, after having been left out against NYRB and it was just too little playing time to really see what is going on. I think he probably will be loaned out, and so far he's been positive about his Benfica experience so hopefully Benfica will not do wrong by him and will instead hold onto him and develop him. It's a strange situation but one that will, in the end, be resolved tastefully.
There isn't really much to say about this game, sadly but I think had Benfica had more time to train and perhaps a few days to rest, it could have been a different outcome. Hopefully playing the Eusebio Cup will show that this team is capable of so much more than what we saw with the Club America game.
Overall:
There are positives here. I've seen a few fans who are already in negative mode, calling for Rui Vitoria to be fired, that he isn't good enough for Benfica and that this team sucks. But that is as pessimistic as you can get. We just saw that there will most likely be new signings once back in Lisbon and I think that the staff knows who is going to be sold, who will be loaned, and where the news players will go when bought. This team is far from complete and far from the best level possible but are they as bad as what others think? No of course not. There are also journalists and fellow writers who are doubting Benfica because of what both Sporting and Porto have done signing wise, but I don't think there is any one team for me that has stood out to be incredible or that has blown everyone away by being incredibly. At this moment the playing field is level and it is only once the season starts that we will see who pulls ahead and who lags.
This team is a new team. Even if most of the players are the same, it's a new team with a new coach. The ideas are going to change, players will be used differently, and it will be a Benfica we haven't seen before. That has risk involved with it, but it is a risk that will hopefully have a reward. We can't predict the future as fans, we can't see what will happen in May, but I'm confident that Rui Vitoria will be able to command this team and to be able to challenge for the title. The next challenges are the Eusebio Cup and the Supertaça against Sporting August 9th and Rui Vitoria has already said those two teams will be different. For me, the team that plays Sporting will be the team closest to what is the starting eleven. I can't read his mind, but if I could predict a line up for that game, it would go something like this:
Julio Cesar
Silvio
Luisao
Jardel
Eliseu
Samaris
Pizzi
Gaitan
Carcela/Talisca (debating on who perhaps plays against Monterey)
Jonas
Jonathan Rodriguez.
We will see what happens, but if Benfica were to win the Supertaça, it would be a massive boost to go into the season with nothing but positivity that this team will win the tricampeao.