Broadcast info
Who’s playing: Premeira Liga giants Benfica host Rio Ave for a crucial league match this festive season. The Eagles currently sit at the top of the league with 35 points, 12 more than sixth-placed Rio Ave. And with rivals Porto sitting second with 34 points, the hosts cannot afford to drop points in this fixture.
What time: On December 21, 2016 at 10:00 am PST/13:00 EST/18:00 GMT/19:00 CET
Which channels:
Which stadium: at the multipurpose Estádio do Sport Lisboa e Benfica in Lisbon, Portugal. The stadium has a capacity of 64,642.
In the USA on fuboTV
In Canada on fuboTV Canada
In the UK on BT Sport 2, BT Sport Live Streaming
*View up-to-date global listings
Match facts
- Benfica have won 31 of their last 35 league games
- They have also won 17 of their last 20 games vs Rio Ave [all comps]
- Rio Ave are riding on a four-match winning streak in the league
Team news
Benfica
Key striker Jonas is doubtful for this match despite his brilliant performance against Estoril when he came on as a substitute. He could however pass a late fitness test to feature against the Big River.
Rio Ave
Pedrinho is expected to start in place of Lionn who has a knock. Marcelo will also miss this match due to suspension after picking up his fifth yellow card of the season.
Match forecast
Benfica come into this match knowing very well that they risk losing the first spot to rivals Porto, who sit second with 34 points, one off Rui Vitoria’s men. Although Porto have played one match more than the Reds, it will be important to collect maximum points here to keep a safe distance between the two sides in terms of point difference.
Jonas could start to add more sharpness in the club’s attack as they search for three important points against the visitors. And talking of the visitors, their record against the Portuguese giants is not so rosy especially at Estadio da Luz. This could turn out to be their major undoing considering the fact that they have lost 17 of their last 20 games against Vitoria’s men in all competitions. For this reason, the hosts should not have a problem getting all the three points here.
Match details, result and original broadcast info
This match has ended. Below are the original Live broadcast details for this match.
Live TV coverage and streaming in United States
Live TV coverage and streaming in United States
Follow the game on-the-go
Download our iOS and Android apps to follow soccer on-the-go. It comes packed with features - live scores, fixtures, results, tables, line-ups, stats, TV schedule and much more! Sorry, no live streaming within the app.
