​UEFA Champions League -- Benfica vs Midtjylland Game Preview

Analysis:

Benfica will host Midtjylland in Portugal for the first leg of their Champions League third qualifying round matchup on Tuesday night.

Benfica

Benfica qualified for the third qualifying round after finishing third in the league last season. They had a strong showing in the Champions League, coming in second in a group that also contained Barcelona. The team then defeated Ajax 3-2 on aggregate in the round of 16, but Liverpool ousted them in the final eight. Benfica have been successful in preseason, winning all five of their games.

Midtjylland

Midtjylland came in second place in the Danish Superliga last year, qualifying for this stage. They have played three league games into the 2022–23 campaign, earning four points overall and moving up to third place in the standings. They participated in the Champions League group stage in 2020–21 and placed fourth in Group D, which also included Liverpool, Ajax, and Atalanta BC.

Prediction

Benfica performed well during the training camp despite not having any official games. All of Portugal's test matches were victories. I think Benfica should be able to handle such an opponent without issue.

Pick: Benfica (-1.5) in AH