Benfica 3-0 Napoli: UEFA Youth League – Match Report

O Benfica hosted Naples this Wednesday, December 10th, at the Benfica Campus (Field No. 1) in a match corresponding to the 6th and final matchday of the UEFA Youth League 2025/26 league phase. The home side secured a dominant 3-0 victory.

Benfica took the field for this final group stage match with two recent Under-17 World Cup champions in their starting eleven. Daniel Banjaqui and Rafael Quintas joined Diogo Ferreira, Gonçalo Oliveira, Rui Silva, Nilson Semedo, Gil Neves, Gonçalo Moreira, Federico Coletta, Eduardo Fernandes and Francisco Silva in the lineup chosen by Vítor Vinha for this crucial contest.

Already qualified for the round of 16, but determined to secure the best possible seeding for the next stage (and thus benefit from home advantage), Benfica nearly opened the scoring in just the 2nd minute. Gil Neves played a through ball to Gonçalo Moreira on the right wing, who unleashed a powerful shot that rattled the Naples crossbar.

In the 10th minute, a promising move involving both Gonçalos of the team almost resulted in a goal: Moreira delivered a free kick into the box, finding Gonçalo Oliveira with a header, but Spinelli made a sharp save for the Italian side.

Eight minutes later, the Eagles were threatening again. Eduardo Fernandes showcased some dazzling footwork on the left, weaving past a defender and delivering a ball into the area, where Francisco Silva’s header narrowly missed the target.

Ten minutes later, the forward, who recently signed a contract extension with the club, finally broke the deadlock.

A well-worked play down the right flank saw the ball circulating between Gil Neves, Daniel Banjaqui and Federico Coletta, eventually finding Gonçalo Moreira, who whipped in a precise cross for Francisco Silva to head home, making it 1-0 in the 28th minute.

Benfica continued to dominate possession, stifling any significant attacking threats from the visitors, though they weren’t able to add to their lead before halftime. The score remained 1-0 at the interval.

Shortly after the restart, Diogo Ferreira was forced into action. A free kick into the Benfica area saw Gonçalo Oliveira inadvertently flick the ball towards goal, but the Eagles’ goalkeeper managed a crucial save in the 51st minute.

Immediately after, Benfica came close to extending their advantage. Gonçalo Moreira burst through on goal, firing a shot that was denied by a smart save from Spinelli in the 54th minute.

Just past the hour mark, Francisco Silva had another opportunity to score, orchestrating a skillful run from the right wing. He cut inside, beat a defender, and unleashed a curling shot that was deflected onto the post by the goalkeeper, narrowly avoiding a second goal in the 60th minute.

The connection between the two Gonçalos paid off in the 72nd minute, doubling Benfica’s lead. Gonçalo Moreira delivered a corner kick from the right, finding Gonçalo Oliveira, who powered a header into the back of the net to make it 2-0.

Gonçalo Moreira nearly added his name to the scoresheet in the 78th minute, but his audacious chip over the goalkeeper struck the crossbar.

Facing a team representing a club synonymous with the legendary Diego Maradona, Benfica’s young talents produced a moment of magic to make it 3-0.

Duarte Soares (replacing Daniel Banjaqui) played a clever pass to João Afonso (substituting Federico Coletta) on the right; the midfielder received the ball, spotted the opening, and flicked it back to Duarte Soares. The finish was spectacular, with the right-back unleashing an acrobatic volley to score in the 78th minute.

At the Benfica Campus, with 12 minutes remaining, Naples had conceded as many goals as they had in their previous five group stage matches combined (3).

Benfica’s dominance continued, and they almost added a fourth. A flowing move ended with Jaden Umeh crossing for Anísio Cabral, who headed against the post in the 84th minute.

The team, coached by Vítor Vinha, controlled the tempo until the final whistle, securing a 3-0 victory to conclude the league phase of the Youth League and advance to the round of 16.

In their six matches in this stage of the competition, Benfica won five – against Qarabag (7-1), Newcastle (1-5), Bayer Leverkusen (5-0), Ajax (0-4) and Naples (3-0) – scoring 26 goals and conceding just 7. Gonçalo Moreira was the team’s top scorer with 7 goals.

COMMENTS

Vítor Vinha (Benfica coach): “There’s a message we try to convey a lot to our players, which is: talent wins games, and teams win championships. When we put talent at the service of the team, everything becomes easier. When we are well organized, focused, understanding what the game is giving us, when we are looking for what we want, it becomes easier for us, regardless of the opponent. We faced a valuable opponent, we quickly understood how they were, we understood where we had to go and we were adding opportunities. Perhaps the 3 goals we scored are few given the opportunities we had. Three shots on the post, plus two or three situations where we could have defined better and scored. Congratulations to our players, congratulations to Sport Lisboa e Benfica, and now we have to continue, we have a lot of things ahead of us. The Youth League only returns on February 4th and 5th and, therefore, until then we will have a lot of time ahead of us, and we must continue our training process, evolve, continue to feed our teams on top, that is what we want, that is what we seek.”

Gonçalo Moreira (Benfica midfielder): “We knew that Naples would be a very annoying team, because it is a team that tightens the man, and we had to find solutions to unlock the game. We ended up reaching the goal on a cross, the 1-0, I think we had a good first half. Then, in the second half, the coach asked us to keep insisting, they tightening up top, we stretched one or two balls to then be able to play, and we ended up reaching two more goals. The victory is fair. We enter all competitions to go as far as possible. We had the goal of qualifying, it had already been achieved, and being able to be among the first 6 [ranked] and play the round of 16 at home, that’s what we wanted. We achieved the victory and achieved that goal. We know that from here on we have to think game by game, and that’s what we’re going to focus on, working to go as far as possible.”

Duarte Soares (Benfica defender): “[Scored a great goal, the team’s 3rd] It hasn’t sunk in yet, it was a great pass from João Afonso, and I, luckily, managed to score a great goal. It will be remembered, yes. The coach gives us the message that we must always be prepared, not only those who start in the starting eleven, but also those who start on the bench, and I am happy to have been able to help.”