Spirited Benfica face equally motivated Chelsea in the first of two all-European clashes in the Round of 16 stage of the FIFA Club World Cup 2025. The winners of the contest are guaranteed to face a Brazilian opposition in the quarterfinals, as one of Palmerias or Botafogo will cross their path.
BEN vs CHE Match Details
Date: Saturday, 28 June 2025 / Sunday, 29 June 2025
Time: 16:00 (BDT) / 01:30 (IST)
Venue: Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte
BEN vs CHE Match Preview
Benfica took full advantage of their underdog status in the final group game, securing a historic 1-0 win over Bayern Munich to clinch the top spot in their group. After recovering from a two-goal deficit to draw 2-2 with Boca Juniors in their tournament opener, followed by a 6-0 thrashing of semi-pro side Auckland City, this win meant the Eagles ended the group stage unbeaten with seven points collected from three games and unlike their Portuguese rivals Porto, who bowed out from the group stages, will enjoy knockout football in their first taste of the Club World Cup. A 13th-minute strike from Andreas Schjelderup and a heroic goalkeeping performance from Anatoliy Trubin, with valiant defending in scorching heat, spearheaded Bruno Lage’s men to their first win in this fixture, which means they have successfully avoided facing high-flying Group D winners Flamengo in the next round. However, they ended up in a last-16 tie against Chelsea, whom they haven’t defeated in the last three competitive games. The last meeting with the Blues in the 2013 Europa League final also ended in a bitter defeat, extending their European final curse. Benfica’s grit and determination to defeat a finely tuned team like Bayern showed they are ready for any battle as they seek a first win against the Londoners now, knowing the team has failed to win their group by choking against the winners, Flamengo and advancing to the quarterfinals.
Chelsea made sure they quickly put behind the disastrous second half against the Brazilian outfit, where they threw away a 1-0 lead to lose 3-1, by securing a comfortable 3-0 win over Tunisian outfit Esperance de Tunis to move into the last-16 stage. In a game where they required only a point to qualify, having defeated LAFC in their tournament opener, the Blues did not let their foot off the pedal with Tosin Adarabioyo heading in the opener right before half-time, summer signing Liam Delap getting his first for the club with Tyrique George adding the last strike in the dying embers of the game. Although Enzo Maresca’s side could only settle for the second spot in their group, they miraculously avoided Bayern Munich in the last-16 due to the German giants’ shock defeat to Benfica, but that also means they face the best team from Group C. It will be impressive for Enzo Maresca’s side to reach the quarter-final stage after not-so-impressing Club World Cup campaign so far, despite new arrival Delap hitting the ground and the team winning 10 of their previous 12 matches in all competitions. The Blues will fancy themselves to win against the Eagles, having triumphed in 11 of their last 15 competitive encounters with the Portuguese oppositions and losing just thrice. The manager implemented crucial changes in the final group game, which worked perfectly, allowing the contributors to the win to keep their places in the starting eleven.
BEN vs CHE Recent Form (all competitions)
BEN: DWWWW
CHE: LWWWW
BEN vs CHE Recent Form (CWC 2025)
BEN: DWW
CHE: WW
BEN vs CHE Predicted Lineups
Benfica
Trubin; Aursnes, Silva, Otamendi, Carreras; Barreiro, Sanches; Di Maria, Prestianni, Schjelderup; Pavlidis
Chelsea
Sanchez; James, Tosin, Colwill, Cucurella; Caicedo, Fernandez; Neto, Palmer, Madueke; Delap
BEN vs CHE Dream11 Match Prediction
An end-to-end game could be on the cards with both sides showing their attacking impetus. Benfica’s defensive might will cause the Blues frustration, but neither side seems to have it to win in 120 minutes. We predict a 2-2 draw and the West Londoners edging out on penalties.
BEN vs CHE Dream11 Team Top picks
Captain Pick: Enzo Fernandez
Vice-captain Picks: Liam Delap, Pedro Neto, Angel Di Maria
Our top pick for BEN vs CHE Dream11 team is Enzo Fernandez with three goal involvements (1 goal, 2 assists) in the Club World Cup group stage and 25 goal contributions (9 goals, 16 assists) in all competitions last season.
BEN vs CHE Dream11 Team Suggestion
GK: Trubin (Cr - 7.5, Pts - 91)
DEF: Tosin (Cr - 8, Pts - 168), Otamendi (Cr - 8.5, Pts - 208), Cucurella (Cr - 8.5, Pts - 59)
MID: Di María (Cr - 9, Pts - 241), Fernández (Cr - 9, Pts - 143), Barreiro (Cr - 8, Pts - 155), Schjelderup (Cr - 7.5, Pts - 79)
FW: Neto (Cr - 8.5, Pts - 132), Pavlidis (Cr - 8.5, Pts - 93), Delap (Cr - 8, Pts - 94)
Vice-captain: Liam Delap
Captain: Enzo Fernandez
