Arsenal vs SL Benfica Tickets

Under Arsene Wenger, Arsenal’s involvement in the UEFA Champions League happened pretty much every year like clockwork. But since the French boss left the club, they have struggled to secure qualification for Europe’s premier club tournament until Mikel Arteta put the Gunners back on the map.

Under Wenger, they regularly made it to the knockout phase, where they invariably were knocked out by top opposition. Bayern Munich did so on three occasions in the Round of 16, with their 10-2 aggregate win over Arsenal in 2016/17 being a particular low.

Their one appearance in the UEFA Champions League final came in 2005/06 when they were beaten 2-1 by FC Barcelona in Paris in particularly painful fashion. Wenger’s side were down to ten men from the 18th minute when Jens Lehmann was sent off, but they still took the lead through Sol Campbell, only to lose late on.

SL Benfica have similarly been frequent participants in the UEFA Champions League and were, of course, two-time winners of the European Cup. Those wins came in back-to-back seasons in 1961 and 1962.

In 1990, they met AC Milan in the European Cup Final and lost by a single goal from Frank Rijkaard in Vienna. The farthest they have gotten in the UEFA Champions League era is the Quarter-Finals, and they did just that in both 2021/22 and 2022/23, where they lost to Liverpool and Inter Milan, respectively.

Arsenal vs. SL Benfica Head to Head

These two teams have met in European fixtures on four occasions in total.

In 1991/92, in the European Cup, the two went head to head in the Second Round, and a Kevin Campbell goal earned George Graham a strong 1-1 draw from their trip to Lisbon, and when Colin Pates put Arsenal ahead at Highbury, the tie was there for the taking. However, Isaias netted a leveler before the break, and the game then went to extra time when Vasili Kulkov scored, and Isaias then added his second to give the visitors a 3-1 away win and a 4-2 aggregate triumph to send them through to the next round.

The two met again in 2020/21 in the UEFA Europa League Round of 32, and again Arsenal collected a 1-1 draw from the Stadio Olimpico (some games in that year’s tournament were held in neutral locations due to the coronavirus pandemic), with Saka scoring two minutes after Pizzi had scored from the spot. In the return, played in Greece, Arsenal edged the game 3-2 thanks to a brace from Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and a goal from Kiernan Tierney, which saw them through to the next round.

Arsenal vs. SL Benfica Connections

A few players have represented both clubs. Swedish international Stefan Schwarz spent four years at Benfica, twice winning the Primeira Liga during that time before he left for Arsenal in 1994 and played for just one season before leaving for Fiorentina.

Nuno Tavares was purchased from Benfica in 2021 but has been little more than a bit-part player at the club, spending time out on loan for much of this time with the North London side.