Benfica 4-1 Celtic
Jhon Duran (5′ Pen), Alexander Bah (23′), Jhon Duran (36′), Vangelis Pavlidis (89′)
Camilo Duran (63′)
Benfica’s first-half performance left Celtic chasing shadows as the Portuguese giants secured a dominant 4-1 victory in fashionable style.
It was a disastrous start from Celtic as Dane Murray wiped out Benfica’s Jhon Duran in the box, resulting in a penalty for the home-side.
And it was a touch of class from the Colombian international, as his Panenka plumped into Viljami Sinisalo’s net, giving the home-side a 1-0 lead inside the first five minutes.
Celtic looked to respond promptly as Kasper Hogh’s low-driven effort, from a tight angle, was saved well by Anatoliy Trubin.
It was the Gianluca Prestianni show for much of the night, with the winger coming agonisingly close to doubling the scoring, as his curled effort just evaded the top-right corner of Sinisalo’s net.
However, it wasn’t long until the Portuguese warriors double their lead. In the 23rd minute, Prestianni showed tremendous feet and picked out colleague Alexander Bah at the back-post. The Dane was left unmarked and finished calmly into the back of the net.
Celtic should have equalised five minutes later when Kasper Hogh struck the post from close range, before the rebound fell to Camilo Duran, who smashed a curled effort of the crossbar.
Celtic’s missed chance came to haunt them. Kasper Hogh’s misplaced pass put Celtic under severe pressure, and Duran didn’t fail to punish the Scottish champions, netting his second for the night. However, questions will be asked about the goalkeeping, as Sinisalo was beaten easily from a tight angle.
Martin O’ Neill’s half-time team talk and substitutions gave Celtic a much-needed lift, as their relentless pressure gave them hope in the 63rd minute. Substitute, Haissem Hassan’s floated cross found Camilo Duran’s head, which ended up in the net, giving the away support some optimism.
Celtic were much improved after the break, showing more intensity and creating chances through their substitutions. But their fightback ultimately fell short. Benfica’s top scorer Vangelis Pavlidis sealed the deal in the 90th minute, giving the home-side another three points in the competition and leaving Celtic disappointed in Lisbon.
Benfica: Trubin (7), Bah (8), Tomás Araújo (7), Lenglet (7), Dahl (5), Aursnes (8), João Palhinha (8), Lukébakio (6), Sudakov (7), Prestianni (10), Durán (9)
Subs: El Karouani (5), Echeverri (5), Pavlidis (8), Schjelderup (5), Circati (3)
Celtic: Sinisalo (2), Donovan (5), Murray (3), Trusty (4), Tierney (6), McGregor (4), Baur (4), Durán (7), Sørensen (3), Tounekti (2), Høgh (1)
Subs: Osmand (6), Hassan (7), Oxlade-Chamberlain (4), Nygren (4), Lotomba (3)
