With the next magical evening in the Champions League, Real Sociedad San Sebastian has opened the door to the round of 16.
The Spanish football club prevailed on Wednesday evening (November 8th, 2023) against coach Roger Schmidt’s Benfica Lisbon, which still had no points, 3-1 (3-0). While San Sebastian leads Group D with ten points from four games, third place and the associated play-offs for the knockout phase of the Europa League are only possible for the Portuguese.
Mikel Merino (6th), Mikel Oyarzabal (11th) and Ander Barrenetxea (21st) sent the home fans into ecstasy in the early stages. After the break, Rafa (49th) scored the result, it was Lisbon’s first goal in the current competition.
Benfica near San Sebastian in a deep sleep
For La Real, represented in the premier class for the third time, the second round of 16 in the club’s history could come true this evening – should Inter Milan win at RB Salzburg. In their debut season in 2003/04, the Basques made it to the round of 16, but were defeated by Olympique Lyon.
Against Benfica, the hosts started furiously, while the guests were in a deep sleep: Florentino’s catastrophic bad pass before the 0-2 was a symbol of this. San Sebastian should have been ahead at half-time, but another goal from Merino (15′) didn’t count due to a handball, and Brais Mendez (29′) also hit the post with a penalty kick. After the restart, the Portuguese champions acted as if they had been changed, but mostly without luck.