Tue Jan 21 20:10:00 UTC 2025: ## Barça Aims for Champions League Win Against Precarious Benfica
**LISBON, Portugal** – Barcelona faces a crucial Champions League clash against Benfica on Wednesday, with vastly different stakes for each team. While Barcelona, under manager Flick, is aiming to secure its place in the knockout stages, Benfica finds itself in a precarious position, fighting to avoid elimination.
Benfica’s current 15th place ranking in the group, ahead of giants like Real Madrid and Manchester City, highlights the unpredictable nature of the new Champions League format. A win for Benfica is paramount, as a loss could leave them on the brink of elimination heading into their final match against Juventus. The narrow 1-point advantage Juventus currently holds adds further pressure. A controversial disallowed goal last week against Bologna has only increased the tension.
In contrast, even a loss wouldn’t eliminate Barcelona. They remain in a strong position to advance, potentially securing qualification in their final group match at home against Atalanta. Barcelona will be hoping to overcome their recent struggles in Lisbon (two heavy defeats in their last two visits) and continue their six-game winning streak. The team, however, will be without Dani Olmo through injury, while Ansu Fati’s inclusion in the squad remains uncertain.
Wojciech Szczesny will start in goal for Barcelona, relegating Iñaki Peña to the bench for the European encounter. Barcelona is looking to use this match as an opportunity to boost morale after recent setbacks in La Liga.
The match, refereed by Danny Makkelie of the Netherlands, kicks off at 3 PM ET (12 AM PT / 2 PM MX). The predicted starting lineups are:
**SL Benfica:** Trubin, Otamendi, Antonio Silva, Tomás Araújo, Álvaro Carreras, Kökçü, Aursnes, Florentino Luis, Aktürkoğlu, Schjelderup, and Pavlidis.
**FC Barcelona:** Szczesny, Jules Koundé, Ronald Araújo, Pau Cubarsí, Alejandro Balde, Marc Casadó, Pedri, Gavi, Raphinha, Lamine Yamal, and Robert Lewandowski.
First Piper 