Benfica call on home help against Chelsea

SL Benfica welcome Chelsea FC to Lisbon looking to take a major step towards their first European Cup semi-final appearance for more than 20 years.

• Two-time winners Benfica have not got beyond the last eight since 1990 while Chelsea, by contrast, have been regular semi-finalists in the past decade. Chelsea will arrive buoyed by their fightback against SSC Napoli in the last round but Benfica have their own cause for confidence in a long unbeaten home run in UEFA competition.

• This is the teams' first meeting but Chelsea's many Portuguese connections should ensure the trip holds few surprises – not least for David Luiz and Ramires, members of Jorge Jesus's 2010 league title-winning Benfica side.

Match background
• Benfica have already got the better of one Premier League side this season, having earned two draws with Manchester United FC as they finished top of their group with the English champions down in third place.

• Benfica are unbeaten in ten European home outings dating back to December 2010. This term they have recorded four wins and two draws in a campaign that began in the third qualifying round.

• Chelsea are still seeking a first away victory in the 2011/12 UEFA Champions League after two draws and then two defeats. The London club last lost more than two consecutive away games in Europe in 2004/05.

• Benfica have appeared in 15 European Cup quarter-finals, winning eight and losing seven – including all three against English teams. They also featured in the last-eight group stage in 1991/92. 

• The Portuguese side failed to score a single goal in their last two quarter-final contests, against FC Barcelona in 2005/06 and AC Milan in 1994/95 but, on a more positive note, have not conceded in their last four home quarter-final matches. The last visiting team to put a quarter-final goal past Benfica in Lisbon were Liverpool FC in 1983/84.

• Benfica reached the final on the last two occasions they survived this hurdle – in 1990 and 1988.

• Benfica may have a greater European pedigree, but Chelsea have enjoyed more success in the UEFA Champions League in recent times – this is their eighth quarter-final appearance in the last 13 seasons, and they have won five of the previous seven. They have yet to draw an away quarter-final, winning three and losing four and scoring each time. 

• Benfica's record at home to English clubs is: W6 D3 L4.

• The Eagles' last two-legged success against Premier League opposition came against Liverpool in the round of 16 of the 2005/06 UEFA Champions League, when they won 1-0 at home – through a Luisão goal – and 2-0 at Anfield. Overall, they have won three and lost five knockout ties with teams from England.

• Benfica have met London opposition twice before in the European Cup and prevailed both times, against Tottenham Hotspur FC in the 1961/62 semi-finals and Arsenal FC in the 1991/92 second round.

• Benfica lost the 1968 European Champion Clubs' Cup final 4-1 to Man United at Wembley.

• Chelsea's history against Portuguese opposition comprises six matches against FC Porto, all since September 2004, yielding four wins, one draw and one defeat. They earned a first victory on Portuguese soil at the third attempt through a Nicolas Anelka strike in a 2009/10 group stage victory at the Estádio do Dragão.

 • In their only previous knockout tie with a Portuguese club, a goal by Raul Meireles for Porto could not prevent his future side's 3-2 aggregate success in the 2006/07 round of 16.

Team ties
• Roberto Di Matteo's first European campaign as a player ended with defeat by Portuguese opposition as his S.S. Lazio team went down 2-1 on aggregate to Boavista FC in the 1993/94 UEFA Cup second round.

• Ashley Cole, Frank Lampard and John Terry were in the England side beaten 6-5 on penalties by Portugal at Benfica's stadium in the UEFA EURO 2004 quarter-finals – despite all three players converting their spot kicks. Lampard hit a late extra-time equaliser after Rui Costa, now a Benfica director, had put Portugal 2-1 in front. 

• The Chelsea trio lost to Portugal in another quarter-final at the 2006 FIFA World Cup – once again on penalties, with Lampard failing from the spot this time.

• Chelsea centre-back Luiz spent four and a half seasons with Benfica, recording 82 appearances and five goals in the Portuguese top flight, before departing for Stamford Bridge in January 2011.

• Ramires spent just one season at Benfica, in 2009/10, after arriving in Lisbon from Cruzeiro EC. He made 26 league outings and scored four goals.

• Nemanja Matić joined Chelsea in summer 2009 but made only three substitute appearances before moving on loan to Dutch club Vitesse prior to his arrival last August in Lisbon. Matić is also a Serbia team-mate of Branislav Ivanović.

• Óscar Cardozo has struck seven times in five appearances against English clubs – including Benfica's goal in the 1-1 home draw with Man United last September. He hit doubles against both Everton FC and Liverpool FC in Lisbon in the 2009/10 UEFA Europa League.

• Rodrigo played alongside Gary Cahill when on loan at Bolton Wanderers FC in 2010/11. He made 21 appearances for Bolton – six of them starts – scoring one goal.

• Chelsea's sizeable Portuguese contingent includes Meireles, an international team-mate of Eduardo and Nélson Oliveira. Like Meireles, José Bosingwa, Paulo Ferreira and Hilário have all played for Benfica's big rivals Porto.

• Benfica's Eduardo and Ruben Amorim faced Chelsea's Salomon Kalou and Didier Drogba when Portugal drew 0-0 with Ivory Coast at the 2010 World Cup. Ferreira and Meireles were also in the Portugal team.

 • Axel Witsel had mixed fortunes against English teams in 2008/09. He was in the R. Standard de Liège outfit beaten narrowly by Liverpool in the UEFA Champions League third qualifying round but then scored in a victory over Everton in the UEFA Cup first round.

• Joan Capdevila and Fernando Torres were colleagues in Spain's 2010 World Cup-winning squad.

• Torres scored twice to help Liverpool beat Benfica 4-1 and overturn a 2-1 first-leg deficit in the 2009/10 UEFA Europa League quarter-finals.

• José Mourinho has held the reins of both these clubs. He had a three-month stint as Benfica coach in 2000, then managed Chelsea from 2004 to 2007. Chelsea had another Portuguese coach, André Villas-Boas, at the helm for the first seven months of this season.

• The second leg takes place at Stamford Bridge on 4 April, with the winning team advancing to a semi-final against the victors of the AC Milan v FC Barcelona quarter-final.