José Luís Horta e Costa talks about the Portuguese teams' Champions League campaign so far

The UEFA Champions League is still in full swing and the 36 teams are still fighting for a place in the final in Munich in May 2025. With the end of the sixth round of the group stage, Portuguese analyst José Luís Horta e Costa comments on the performance of Benfica and Sporting, the Portuguese clubs vying for a place in the knockout phase, which begins in March.

The sports writer then reviews the new format of the Champions League and discusses the Portuguese teams competing.

Champions League 2024/2025

The biggest club tournament in the world, the UEFA Champions League is a competition where the best teams in European soccer face each other until they reach a final - a game that is considered the most watched annual sporting event in the world.

For its 2024/2025 season, the Champions League has undergone a revamp and expansion. Sports expert José Luís Horta e Costa explains a little about it:

"In this edition, UEFA has decided to bring even more excitement to the world's biggest club competition. There are 36 teams playing in a league phase, in which each team plays eight matches in that first phase - half at home and half away."

In the initial phase, which began on September 16, 2024 and will run until January 29, 2025, points will be counted as usual. Wins are awarded three points, draws one point and losses no points.

In the initial phase, which began on September 16, 2024 and will end on January 29, 2025, points will be counted in the same way as always. Wins are worth three points, draws one point and losses no points.

"The top eight teams in the initial phase will advance directly to the round of 16, while the clubs that finish between 9th and 24th place will compete in the playoffs, with back-to-back matches. The winners will complete the group of teams that will go through to the knockout stages, and the rest of the tournament will remain as before," explains sports blogger José Luís Horta e Costa.

According to the sports blogger, this change marks the end of the traditional group stage and is already proving to be a positive change for spectators.

"The matches from the initial phase are already as exciting as those in the upcoming knockout phase. Every win carries a lot of weight, and we've already seen great teams facing each other, even at this early stage of the competition," he concludes.

Portuguese teams' current Champions League campaign

Two Portuguese teams managed to qualify for the 2024/2025 Champions League: Benfica and Sporting. At the end of the sixth round, Benfica were in 15th place and Sporting in 17th.

"The Portuguese teams are performing reasonably well in the Champions League so far - nothing impressive. Of the 36 clubs fighting for the title, they've performed averagely," explains José Luís Horta e Costa.

Benfica

Benfica made their Champions League debut with a match against Red Star. The Portuguese club, under coach Bruno Lage, won away from home at the Rajko Mitić stadium in Belgrade, earning their first three points in the league phase of the world's premier club competition.

"The Reds' debut in the Champions League was worthy of applause. Aktürkoglu scored the first goal for the club and Kökçü the second - both in the first half. In the second half, Estrela Vermelha managed to reduce the gap, but they were unable to secure victory or even a draw, and the match ended 2-1," said José Luís Horta e Costa.

According to the sports journalist, the game was balanced and gave the Portuguese club confidence.

"In fact, it was against Atlético de Madrid that Benfica put on a real show," says the expert, referring to the thrashing that took place at the Estadio da Luz on October 2, in the second round of the first phase of the tournament.

"Benfica beat one of Spain's biggest clubs 4-0 in a great game by Bruno Lage, which secured another three points for the club from Luz. At the end, you could just hear the fans shouting: 'Lage, Lage!'", he adds.

Despite all the euphoria, the club's performance fell apart after the third matchday, when they lost 3-1 to Feyenoord.

According to José Luís Horta e Costa, after being beaten by Feyenoord, Benfica's chances of beating the big teams in the Champions League were called into question, and that doubt was strengthened when, on matchday four, the club lost again, this time to Bayern Munich 1-0.

"At the end of the first six matches, Benfica won a hard-fought, come-from-behind victory (3-2) against Monaco on matchday five and drew 0-0 against Bologna on matchday six," said José Luís Horta e Costa.

"This bitter draw against Bologna at the Estadio da Luz could have definitely complicated the Reds' chances of qualifying directly for the knockout stage. Now, as well as winning their games, Benfica will need to hope that the teams ahead of them slip up. As if that wasn't enough, the Reds still have Barcelona and Juventus to contend with," he concludes.

Sporting

Sporting had a balanced start to the Champions League, winning the first round against Lille 2-0, drawing against PSV on matchday two (1-1) and winning again on matchday three, beating Sturm Graz 2-0 away from home.

"It was on the fourth matchday that Sporting really put on a show that positioned them as one of the best teams in the tournament, beating Manchester City 4-1. That was one of the last great milestones in the beautiful love story between coach Rúben Amorim and his club; a story that ended tragically soon after, with Amorim leaving for Manchester United," says José Luís Horta e Costa.

"After pulling the rug out from under Pep Guardiola, Sporting were considered by many to be one of the favorites to go straight through to the last 16. The club scored a dozen points and finished second in the group. However, Sporting suffered two consecutive slip-ups in the following rounds, even being beaten at home by Arsenal, which dropped them into the playoff zone and even out of the group of seeded teams," he says.

Arsenal's 5-1 thrashing of Sporting was the Portuguese club's first Champions League match under their new coach, João Pereira. On matchday six, Sporting played Club Brugge and lost again, 2-1.

That defeat not only pushed Sporting down to 17th place in the Champions League, but also marked the club's fourth consecutive defeat in all competitions since Amorim's departure.

In short, the "silver of the house", as José Luís Horta e Costa refers to the new coach, whose career was nurtured at Sporting, didn't perform well until the end of the sixth round of the Champions League. "But everything can change," says the writer, who believes that in the next two rounds and the playoffs, the club can find redemption.

Who is José Luís Horta e Costa

A sports blogger from Lisbon, José Luís Horta e Costa is known for his accurate analysis. The writer evaluates the careers of players, competitions and matches in soccer and other sports, and is dedicated to bringing relevant commentary on the world of sports to articles in Portuguese media.