17 wins from 20 games
In Lisbon, after less than half a year, he is called the big one, the “big Schmidt”. At least that’s what Benfica fans call him, although Roger Schmidt doesn’t want to take himself too seriously. The 55-year-old has led the Portuguese record champions as coach for 20 competitive games. The spectacular 4-3 win in the Champions League against Juventus was his 17th win and he hasn’t lost yet – of all the top division clubs in the TM database, this season only Paris Saint-Germain and the SSC have done so Napoli too, both have played at least three fewer competitive games. And yet says the Sauerland native. “That has nothing to do with Schmidt.” But what then?
Schmidt lets the Benfica supporters dream again. From the first championship since 2019. From the first cup win since 2017. After qualifying for the round of 16, which was perfect against Juve, the 55-year-old was even asked about winning the “premier class” – the great longing of Benfica supporters since the days of Eusébios and Béla Guttmanns, who after his self-chosen departure in 1962 prophesied that the club would not win a European Cup for 100 years. The “curse” continues to this day. When asked, however, Schmidt had to smile. “Well, what can happen?” replied the ex-Bayer Leverkusen coach with a smile and quickly became serious again: “I think we’re playing at a high level at the moment. Our goal must be to maintain this level.”
Benfica undefeated
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When Schmidt took over the “Adler” last summer, some fans asked themselves: Who is that actually, this Schmidt? He was far from the “big Schmidt” and in a way that was fitting because Benfica had also lost in size. FC Porto and city rivals Sporting have won the championships in recent years. Benfica, on the other hand, brought back coach Jorge Jesus in 2020, who led the club to three championships between 2009 and 2015 – an experiment that failed. Although Benfica surprisingly made it into the quarter-finals of the Champions League last season, Jesus had been on leave for a long time. In the summer, Schmidt came as the successor to interim coach Nélson Veríssimo. Then something changed.
Neres, Bah & Co.: Benfica’s well-invested Núñez millions
With the backing of the club management and transfer income of 134 million euros on the credit side, above all for Darwin Núñez (23, Liverpool), the second most expensive departure in the club’s history, Schmidt turned the team inside out according to his ideas. Schmidt hardly found any use for Julian Weigl (27), whom the fans had voted player of the year in the summer of 2021. Weigl now plays for Borussia Mönchengladbach and up-and-coming youngsters such as Enzo Fernández (21), who bought €12 million, and Florentino (23), who was previously loaned to Getafe, are in Benfica’s central midfield.
With Núñez and Witsel: Benfica’s most expensive departures
The transfers also went well: David Neres (25), who left Shakhtar Donetsk after six months without a competitive game as a result of the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine, already has eleven points. With a transfer fee of 15.3 million euros, the winger is the most expensive signing this season. 13 million signing Fredrik Aursnes (26) has now established himself, as has right-back Alexander Bah (24), who came from Slavia Prague for 8 million euros. Julian Draxler (29) has to fight for a regular place until the summer after a serious injury.
Only in the center of defense is it not the players brought in by Schmidt from outside who have always prevented defeats to date. Schmidt promoted the exceptionally talented 18-year-old António Silva to the second central defender alongside the veteran and captain Nicolás Otamendi (34). João Victor (24), signed by Corinthians for 9.5 million euros, has been injured so far, ex-Bundesliga professional John Anthony Brooks (29) is on the bench as an experienced alternative.
After Núñez’s €80m departure, 21-year-old Gonçalo Ramos, also from his youth team, has been selected up front. The latter broke through last season after Jesus’ departure and is now the team’s top scorer with ten goals in all competitions.
And then there’s Rafa Silva (29), the 1.72 meter tall speed dribbler, who shook the stadium with his brace against Juve. His goals, too, came from the high-tempo attacks they love so much for in Portugal’s Schmidt football. With aggressiveness, constant activity and great goals from time to time, Schmidt quickly convinced the supporters of his style of play. “It’s a very nice moment for us,” said Silva after the win against Juventus. A moment in which the “big Schmidt” played a big part.
Made it unnecessarily exciting at the end.
Found that the RS changed much too late today. Juve got stronger with the changes and players like Bah, who made a great player again, were pretty flat.
The game needed a Neres after the 4-1, even if Aursnes is such a great kicker! You could have put Aursnes in the middle and replaced Enzo. Fortunately, the latter has a break in the game against Maccabi due to the yellow one. The guy already has an incredible number of games…
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