Barcelona resume their impressive UEFA Champions League campaign on Tuesday at Benfica, where Hansi Flick’s team could potentially book a spot in the round of 16 if things go in their favor.
Heading into Matchday 7, Barcelona sit in second place in the league phase and are already ensured a spot in the knockout round playoffs. Benfica, meanwhile, are 15th, but in risky territory – while they are just three points shy of a top eight berth, they also only have a two point cushion keeping them in the top 24.
Here’s what you need to know before tuning in.
How to watch and odds
- Date: Tuesday, Jan. 21 | Time: 3 p.m. ET
- Location: Estadio da Luz — Lisbon, Portugal
- Watch: Paramount+
- Odds: Benfica +195; Draw +280; Barcelona +120
Storylines
The grip they once held atop La Liga may be old news at this point, but things are still trending in the right direction for Barcelona. Though they are just coming off a draw at Getafe, they are unbeaten in their last five, a streak that includes their commanding win over Real Madrid in the Spanish Super Cup final. All the usual suspects continue to put in the work, too – Robert Lewandowski is up to 26 goals across all competitions, while Raphinha has 20. Lamine Yamal, the team’s rising star ,has nine goals and 12 assists at this point in the season, but the goals are coming from a wide variety of people – Jules Kounde, for example, has racked up a handful of goals and assists in recent weeks.
Projected Barcelona lineup
Pena, Kounde, Cubarsi, Martinez, Balde, Casado, Pedri, Yamal, Gavi, Raphina, Lewandowski
Prediction
Barcelona are the definition of an in-form team and have no problems scoring, failing to score in just two games across all competitions this season. They have all the tools they need to pick up another convincing win, so expect them to do just that. Pick: Benfica 0, Barcelona 3
Champions League standings
Key: Positions 1-8 qualify for Round of 16 while positions 9-24 qualify for Knockout Phase Play-Offs and positions 25-36 are eliminated.
| Pos | Team | GP | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Liverpool | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 1 | +12 | 18 |
| 2 | Barcelona | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 21 | 7 | +14 | 15 |
| 3 | Arsenal | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 11 | 2 | +9 | 13 |
| 4 | Bayer Leverkusen | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 12 | 5 | +7 | 13 |
| 5 | Aston Villa | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 9 | 3 | +6 | 13 |
| 6 | Inter | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 1 | +6 | 13 |
| 7 | Brest | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 10 | 6 | +4 | 13 |
| 8 | Lille | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 10 | 7 | +3 | 13 |
| 9 | Borussia Dortmund | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 18 | 9 | +9 | 12 |
| 10 | Bayern Munich | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 17 | 8 | +9 | 12 |
| 11 | Atletico Madrid | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 14 | 10 | +4 | 12 |
| 12 | AC Milan | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 12 | 9 | +3 | 12 |
| 13 | Atalanta | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 13 | 4 | +9 | 11 |
| 14 | Juventus | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 9 | 5 | +4 | 11 |
| 15 | Benfica | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 10 | 7 | +3 | 10 |
| 16 | Monaco | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 12 | 10 | +2 | 10 |
| 17 | Sporting Lisbon | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 11 | 9 | +2 | 10 |
| 18 | Feyenoord | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 14 | 15 | -1 | 10 |
| 19 | Club Brugge | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 8 | -2 | 10 |
| 20 | Real Madrid | 6 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 12 | 11 | 1 | 9 |
| 21 | Celtic | 6 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 10 | 10 | 0 | 9 |
| 22 | Manchester City | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 13 | 9 | +4 | 8 |
| 23 | PSV | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 10 | 8 | 2 | 8 |
| 24 | Dinamo Zagreb | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 10 | 15 | -5 | 6 |
| 25 | Paris Saint-Germain | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 7 |
| 26 | Stuttgart | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 9 | 12 | -3 | 7 |
| 27 | Shakhtar Donetsk | 6 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 13 | -8 | 4 |
| 28 | Sparta Praha | 6 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 7 | 18 | -11 | 4 |
| 29 | Sturm Graz | 6 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 4 | 9 | -5 | 3 |
| 30 | Girona | 6 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 4 | 10 | -6 | 3 |
| 31 | Crvena Zvezda | 6 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 10 | 19 | -9 | 3 |
| 32 | RB Salzburg | 6 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 3 | 18 | -15 | 3 |
| 33 | Bologna | 6 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 7 | -6 | 2 |
| 34 | RB Leipzig | 6 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 6 | 13 | -7 | 0 |
| 35 | Slovan Bratislava | 6 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 5 | 21 | -16 | 0 |
| 36 | Young Boys | 6 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 3 | 22 | -19 | 0 |
Matchday 5 TV schedule
All times Eastern
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