SL Benfica finally snapped their poor run on neutral ground with a resounding 6-0 triumph over Auckland City in the FIFA Club World Cup, marking their first win in eight such fixtures.
For Auckland, it was yet another forgettable outing, their seventh straight loss in this competition, with a staggering combined scoreline of 27-1.
The match began with an early warning sign from Benfica. Just two minutes in, Kerem Aktürkoglu missed the target from a promising position, foreshadowing a dominant performance from the Portuguese side.
Auckland could barely get a touch on the ball as the Lisbon giants exploited the wide areas to full effect.
Nicolás Otamendi even attempted an acrobatic overhead kick that drew cheers from the scattered crowd, though his effort was comfortably held by goalkeeper Nathan Garrow.
Moments later, Garrow was called into action again, this time denying Orkun Kökçü from close range. Auckland’s first real glimpse of goal came through Jerson Lagos, but his strike was expertly blocked.
Auckland managed to string together a few decent attacking moves thanks to Haris Zeb’s progressive play and some clever contributions from Myer Bevan and Zhou Tong.
Their efforts didn’t go unnoticed, prompting Benfica coach Bruno Lage to show visible frustration with his team’s lapses.
Despite their dominance, Benfica struggled to convert chances. Aktürkoglu spurned another good opportunity,
Ángel Di María sent a speculative strike into the stands, and Vangelis Pavlidis squandered a golden chance from six yards out after being teed up by Di María.
A disallowed goal on 42 minutes seemed to capture the frustration of Benfica’s first half. Garrow had already made seven saves to keep Auckland in the contest, but the resistance finally broke deep into stoppage time.
A rash challenge from Zeb brought down Gianluca Prestianni in the box, handing Benfica a penalty. Di María made no mistake, calmly sending Garrow the wrong way to give his side the lead.
Severe weather delayed the second half by more than two hours, but once the match resumed, both sides came out with renewed energy.
Zeb tested Trubin with a low strike on 48 minutes, and Bevan had a near miss shortly after. However, Benfica’s quality soon shone through.
Pavlidis doubled the lead with a composed finish, before substitute Renato Sanches rifled in a powerful long-range shot just minutes after stepping onto the pitch.
Leandro Barreiro then added two quick-fire goals in the 75th and 77th minutes, capitalizing on a visibly fatigued Auckland side.
The final blow came in stoppage time when Nikko Boxall’s reckless challenge on Di María led to a second spot-kick. The veteran winger stepped up again, sealing a brace and completing the rout with a well-placed low finish.
Although the scoreline was emphatic, it could have been even worse for Auckland without Garrow’s heroics in goal.
The defeat means Benfica registered their first clean sheet in six matches, yet concerns linger over their inconsistent first-half showing ahead of their decisive clash with Bayern Munich in Group C.
For Auckland, the end is near. With 16 goals conceded in just two matches, their campaign will conclude with their final group game against Boca Juniors before they bow out of the tournament.
