After an embarrassing opening-round draw against promoted team Academico Viseu, Benfica Lisbon broke free on Monday night and sent Casa Pia AC straight to the bottom of the standings with a rout.
After an embarrassing opening-round draw against promoted team Academico Viseu, Benfica Lisbon broke loose on Monday evening and sent Casa Pia AC straight to the bottom of the standings with a rout.
Benfica went undefeated last season, but with 23 wins in 34 games and 11 draws, they still missed out on the league title—which went to FC Porto—and even failed to secure second place for Champions League qualification, which went to local rival Sporting. Eleven draws—too many to stay at the very top. And how did the Eagles start the 2026–27 season? Of course, with a draw—a 2–2 tie, a result Benfica experienced a full five times last season.
Frustration ran deep after the draw in the season opener against promoted Academico Viseu; after all, the team led by new coach Marco Silva—who replaced José Mourinho, who had left for Real Madrid in July—squandered a lead twice. Benfica then vented its frustration with a 7–0 rout of Casa Pia AC, which had managed to stay in the league via the relegation playoffs.
Prestianni opens the scoring, Pavlidis completes the hat trick
Prestianni, who was suspended for six matches at the FIFA level last season following the first leg of the Champions League playoff against Real Madrid for “discriminatory behavior,” opened the scoring just three minutes in; his shot was deflected into his own net by David Sousa. Rafa set the tone early with the 2–0 goal after 14 minutes, before last year’s top scorer Pavlidis (22 goals in 2025–26)—who had made four appearances for Bochum in the 2. Bundesliga—stepped up shortly after halftime and sealed the deal with a hat trick in the span of seven minutes. The final score was a decisive 7–0.
