Benfica defeated German giants Bayern Munich 1-0 on Tuesday to secure their spot in the Club World Cup round of 16 and finish first in Group C. The historic win marked Benfica’s first-ever victory over Bayern in a competitive match. Bayern, already through to the knockout stage, ended second and will now face Brazilian side Flamengo in the next round. Benfica will go up against the runner-up of Group D, which could be Chelsea or Esperance.
With qualification already sealed, Bayern coach Vincent Kompany rested key players and made seven changes to the starting lineup. Only Manuel Neuer, Josip Stanisic, Raphael Guerreiro, and Serge Gnabry remained from the side that beat Boca Juniors in their previous match. The lack of cohesion showed early, and Benfica quickly took control.
Goalkeeper Neuer was called into action early to stop a powerful shot from Renato Sanches. In the 13th minute, Frederik Aursnes cut the ball back into the box, and Andreas Schjelderup connected it with a clean first-time shot to find the bottom corner and give Benfica the lead.
The match was played under sweltering conditions, which slowed the tempo and forced both sides to manage their energy. Bayern’s best chance before halftime came when Gnabry teed up Leroy Sane, who blasted the ball over the bar.
Kompany responded at halftime with a triple substitution, bringing on Harry Kane, Michael Olise, and Joshua Kimmich. The changes gave Bayern a spark. Kimmich nearly assisted an equalizer with a long ball to Sane, who Benfica keeper Anatoliy Trubin denied. Trubin continued his standout performance by stopping another close-range effort from Thomas Muller.
Benfica stayed dangerous on the counter. Kerem Akturkoglu beat Dayot Upamecano but was stopped by Neuer. Bayern briefly thought they had scored when Kimmich fired home from distance, but the goal was disallowed for offside, as Kane was in the line of sight of the goalkeeper.
As the clock ticked down, Bayern kept pressing. Trubin was quick off his line to block Sane again, and Kane missed a last-gasp header in stoppage time. Benfica held on for the win, knocking out Boca Juniors and advancing as group leaders.
