Inter Milan vs Benfica facts

Having ended a 12-year wait to reach the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals, Inter Milan are well placed to continue to the last four for the first time since 2010 as they welcome Benfica, whose own hopes of a first semi-final appearance are hanging by a thread.

Second-half goals from Nicolò Barella (51) and substitute Romelu Lukaku (82), the latter a penalty after João Mário had handled, gave Inter command of the tie in Lisbon, ending Benfica's unbeaten run in this season's competition.

This is Inter's second successive tie against Portuguese opponents, Lukaku's late first-leg winner in Milan proving to be the only goal of the round of 16 tie against Benfica's domestic rivals Porto. Benfica, meanwhile, beat Club Brugge home and away at the same stage, making it six wins and two draws in the 2022/23 UEFA Champions League before their first-leg defeat.

The Portuguese club are in the quarter-finals for the second season in succession but have lost all five ties at this stage of the UEFA Champions League, while Inter have not reached this point since going out as holders to Schalke in 2010/11.

This is the only one of this season's UEFA Champions League quarter-finals not featuring a reigning domestic champion.

The winners of this tie will face AC Milan or Napoli in the semi-final.

Previous meetings

Inter claimed their second European Cup at Benfica's expense, Helenio Herrera's side winning 1-0 in the 1965 final at their own San Siro home thanks to a 43rd-minute goal from Jair.

The sides' only other fixtures came in the 2003/04 UEFA Cup fourth round, the first leg in Lisbon finishing goalless before a 4-3 victory for Alberto Zaccheroni's Inter in Milan. Although Nuno Gomes gave the visitors a 36th-minute lead, Obafemi Martins (45+1) levelled before the break. Álvaro Recoba put Inter in front on the hour and Christian Vieri (64) quickly extended the lead; Nuno Gomes' second goal of the night in the 67th minute gave Benfica hope but Martins (70) swiftly got his second and Inter's fourth, although Tiago's 77th-minute reply for the visitors set up a tense finale.

The first-leg win in Lisbon means Inter remain undefeated against Benfica (W3 D1); they have won both previous games in Milan.

Form guide

Inter

Inter's record in European Cup quarter-finals is W8 L4:
2010/11 Schalke L 3-7 (2-5 h, 1-2 a)
2009/10 CSKA Moskva W 2-0 (1-0 h, 1-0 a)
2005/06 Villarreal L 2-2 away goals (2-1 h, 0-1 a)
2004/05 AC Milan L 0-5 (0-2 a, 0-3 h forfeit)
2002/03 Valencia W 2-2 away goals (1-0 h, 1-2 a)
1998/99 Manchester United L 1-3 (0-2 a, 1-1 h)
1980/81 Crvena zvezda W 2-1 (1-1 h, 1-0 a)
1971/72 Standard Liège W 2-2 away goals (1-0 h, 1-2 a)
1966/67 Real Madrid W 3-0 (1-0 h, 2-0 a)
1965/66 Ferencváros W 5-1 (4-0 h, 1-1 a)
1964/65 Rangers W 3-2 (3-1 h, 0-1 a)
1963/64 Partizan W 4-1 (2-0 a, 2-1 a)

Inter have lost four of their six UEFA Champions League quarter-finals.

This is the Nerazzurri's 16th UEFA Champions League campaign and a fifth in a row, their longest run since they appeared for ten successive seasons between 2002/03 and 2011/12. This is their 12th appearance in the knockout stage.

Simone Inzaghi's side ended the club's run of three successive group stage eliminations last term by finishing second behind Real Madrid in Group D; Inter recovered after taking only one point from their first two fixtures to finish on ten and reach the round of 16 for the first time since 2011/12.

Inter's campaign ended in the first knockout round, however, despite a 1-0 second-leg win at Liverpool, the damage having been done by a 2-0 loss in the first game in Milan.

This season Inter's Group C campaign started and finished with 2-0 defeats against Bayern München, but they remained unbeaten in between those losses, collecting ten points including a decisive four against Barcelona (1-0 h, 3-3 a) and wrapping up progress with a 4-0 success at home to Viktoria Plzeň on Matchday 5.

The Milan club then edged past Benfica's domestic rivals Porto, winning 1-0 in Milan before holding out for a goalless draw in Portugal.

Inter were second in Serie A in 2021/22, finishing two points behind city rivals AC Milan.

The win against Porto was only Inter's sixth in their last 16 UEFA Champions League home games (D5 L5), although five of those have come in their last seven matches (L2).

Inter have kept clean sheets in six of their last eight UEFA Champions League matches, including all three in the knockout phase.

The first leg of their round of 16 tie against Porto was Inter's first game against a Portuguese club since the 2006/07 UEFA Champions League group stage, when they lost 1-0 at Sporting CP but won at home by the same scoreline.

This season's victory against Porto extended the Nerazzurri's winning run at home to Portuguese visitors to seven matches; a 0-0 draw against Boavista in the 1991/92 UEFA Cup first round is the only one of Inter's 11 home fixtures against Portuguese clubs they have failed to win.

Home and away, Inter have now won 12 of their 22 games with Portuguese clubs, drawing six.

Before the round of 16 the Nerazzurri had not faced a Portuguese side in a knockout tie since beating Porto in the 2004/05 UEFA Champions League round of 16 (1-1 a, 3-1 h). This season's win against the same opponents made their aggregate record in two-legged ties against Portuguese clubs W6 L2; they have won the last five.

Inter have won 17 of the 18 UEFA competition ties in which they have triumphed away from home in the first leg, including four times out of five by a 2-0 scoreline, the most recent case being against Bulgarian side Ludogorets in the 2019/20 UEFA Europa League round of 32 (2-1 h). Their only aggregate defeat came in the third round of the 1988/89 UEFA Cup against Bayern München, when a Nerazzurri side containing Lothar Mathäus and Andreas Brehme, both recently recruited from Bayern, followed a 2-0 win in Munich with a 1-3 defeat in Milan and exited on away goals.

Inter's record in four UEFA penalty shoot-outs is W2 L2:
5-4 v Celtic, 1971/72 European Cup semi-final
3-4 v Aston Villa, 1994/95 UEFA Cup first round
5-3 v Grazer AK, 1996/97 UEFA Cup second round
1-4 v Schalke, 1996/97 UEFA Cup final

Benfica

Benfica's European Cup quarter-final record is W8 L10 with defeats in all five in the UEFA Champions League era:
2021/22 Liverpool L 4-6 (1-3 h, 3-3 a)
2015/16 Bayern München L 2-3 (0-1 a, 2-2 h)
2011/12 Chelsea L 1-3 (0-1 h, 1-2 a)
2005/06 Barcelona L 0-2 (0-0 h, 0-2 a)
1994/95 AC Milan L 0-2 (0-2 a, 0-0 h)
1989/90 Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk W 4-0 (1-0 h, 3-0 a)
1987/88 Anderlecht W 2-1 (2-0 h, 0-1 a)
1983/84 Liverpool L 1-5 (0-1 a, 1-4 h)
1977/78 Liverpool L 2-6 (1-2 h, 1-4 a)
1975/76 Bayern München L 1-5 (0-0 h, 1-5 a)
1971/72 Feyenoord W 5-2 (0-1 a, 5-1 h)
1968/69 Ajax L 0-3 replay (3-1 a, 1-3 h, 0-3 n)
1967/68 Vasas W 3-0 (0-0 a, 3-0 h)
1965/66 Manchester United L 3-8 (2-3 a, 1-5 h)
1964/65 Real Madrid W 6-3 (5-1 h, 1-2 a)
1962/63 Dukla Praha W 2-1 (2-1 h, 0-0 a)
1961/62 Nürnberg W 7-3 (1-3 a, 6-0 h)
1960/61 AGF W 7-2 (3-1 h, 4-1 a)

Only Bayern München, with 12, have suffered more European Cup quarter-final defeats than Benfica's ten.

Benfica are competing in the UEFA Champions League proper for the 17th time and the 12th in 13 seasons – they missed out only in 2020/21, when they were beaten by PAOK in the third qualifying round. They have reached a seventh knockout phase, qualifying in successive seasons for only the second time, after 2015/16 and 2016/17.

In 2021/22 the Eagles came through two qualifying rounds to reach the group stage, where they collected eight points to finish second in Group E behind Bayern, eliminating Barcelona in the process. They then ousted Ajax in the round of 16 (2-2 h, 1-0 a) before losing to Liverpool in the quarter-finals (1-3 h, 3-3 a).

Benfica – who were third in the Portuguese Liga in 2021/22, 17 points behind champions Porto and 11 adrift of runners-up Sporting CP – have reached seven European Cup finals, winning the trophy in 1961 and 1962 but losing on their five subsequent appearances, most recently against AC Milan in 1990.

The Portuguese giants kicked off this season under new coach Roger Schmidt in the third qualifying round, recording two emphatic wins against Midtjylland (4-1 h, 3-1) with Gonçalo Ramos scoring a first-leg hat-trick. They then eased past Dynamo Kyiv (2-0 a, 3-0 h) to make it four wins from four in UEFA Champions League play-off ties.

Benfica then won four of their six Group H games, the exceptions two 1-1 draws against Paris Saint-Germain, and snatched first place ahead of their French rivals with a remarkable 6-1 win at Maccabi Haifa on Matchday 6. The Eagles scored five times in the last 31 minutes to claim their biggest away UEFA Champions League victory and finish ahead of Paris by virtue of scoring more away goals.

Paired with Club Brugge in the round of 16, Benfica eased through with a 2-0 win in Belgium and a 5-1 home success to reach successive European Cup quarter-finals for the first time since 1968/69.

A 5-2 defeat at Bayern on Matchday 4 last season is one of only two Benfica losses in their last 17 European games outside Lisbon (W8 D7). Conversely, despite wins at Juventus, Maccabi Haifa and Club Brugge this season, the Eagles have managed only four victories in their last 14 away matches in the UEFA Champions League proper (D5 L5), the other at Ajax last season. However, they have won four of the last six, drawing the other two.

Former Inter midfielder João Mário had scored in five successive UEFA Champions League matches, four of those goals penalties, before drawing a blank in the first leg.

Benfica had already faced Italian opposition in this season's UEFA Champions League prior to the first leg, beating Juventus 2-1 in Turin on Matchday 2 and 4-3 in Lisbon on Matchday 5 in the group stage, João Mário scoring from the spot in both games with David Neres getting the winner in the away match and Rafa Silva doing likewise at home with his second goal of the game.

Before their victory in Turin, Benfica had not faced an Italian club since losing away (2-4) and home (1-2) to Napoli in the 2016/17 UEFA Champions League group stage. That defeat in Naples is one of five in their last seven away matches against Serie A sides (W1 D1).

The Eagles have played 34 games against Italian clubs with the record W11 D5 L18; in Italy, including the 1965 European Cup final, it is W4 D1 L11.

This is Benfica's first meeting with Italian opponents in a knockout tie since they beat Juventus 2-1 on aggregate in the 2013/14 UEFA Europa League semi-finals (2-1 h, 0-0 a). That made their record in two-legged contests with Serie A sides W5 L7, and was their second aggregate win in a row after seven successive defeats.

In addition to their defeat by Inter in Milan in 1965, Benfica have twice lost European Cup finals to AC Milan, 2-1 in London in 1963 and 1-0 in Vienna in 1990.

Benfica have lost the first leg at home in UEFA competition on six previous occasions, and went on to suffer an aggregate defeat five times including against Liverpool last season. Their only aggregate success was against Dinamo Bucureşti in the first round of the 1999/2000 UEFA Cup (0-1 h, 2-0 a). This is the second time they have lost the home first leg 2-0, the other against another Italian side, Fiorentina, in the 1996/97 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup quarter-final when they bowed out despite a 1-0 away win in the second leg.

Benfica's record in four UEFA penalty shoot-outs is W2 L2:
4-1 v Torpedo Moskva, 1977/78 European Cup first round
5-6 v PSV Eindhoven, 1987/88 European Cup final
4-1 v PAOK, 1999/2000 UEFA Cup second round
2-4 v Sevilla, 2013/14 UEFA Europa League final

Links and trivia

Benfica president Rui Costa spent most of his playing career in Italy, representing Fiorentina for seven seasons (1994–2001) and AC Milan for five (2001–06).

After winning the Coppa Italia twice with Fiorentina, Rui Costa was part of the Milan side that lifted the UEFA Champions League in 2002/03, beating Juventus in the all-Italian final, and also claimed the UEFA Super Cup and the Coppa Italia the same year. He was also in the team that reached the 2004/05 UEFA Champions League final, losing on penalties to Liverpool in Istanbul.

Rui Costa's Milan team-mates included Filippo Inzaghi, the brother of Inter coach Simone.

João Mário scored four goals in 69 appearances in all competitions for Inter between 2016 and 2019.

Gilberto played in Italy for Serie A sides Fiorentina (2015/16) and Verona (2016 loan) and Serie B outift Latina (2016/17 loan).

Have played together:
André Onana & David Neres (Ajax 2017–22)

International team-mates:
Lautaro Martínez, Joaquín Correa & Nicolás Otamendi (Argentina)
Robin Gosens & Julian Draxler (Germany)

Otamendi and Martínez were both part of Argentina's victorious squad at the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

Otamendi was also in the Argentina side that beat Italy 3-0 in the Finalissima at Wembley on 1 June 2022. Barella played 90 minutes for Italy.

Latest news

Inter

Inter's first-leg win in Lisbon ended a run of six games without a win in all competitions (D3 L3) although they were beaten again on Saturday, going down 1-0 at home to Monza.

That made it three successive league defeats at San Siro, all by a 1-0 scoreline. It is the first time Inter have ever lost three successive home Serie A matches without scoring.

A 2-0 victory against Lecce on 5 March is Inter's only other success in their last ten games, with five defeats.

Inter were without a win in six away games (D3 L3), scoring only three goals, before their victory in Lisbon.

Following the 0-0 second-leg draw at Porto, the Nerazzurri lost 1-0 at home to both Juventus and Fiorentina in Serie A to make it three consecutive Serie A losses for the first time since four successive defeats in April-May 2017. They had won their previous five home matches at San Siro but have now suffered six defeats on their own ground in 2022/23 (W16), although only the 0-2 Matchday 1 reverse by Bayern München came by a margin of greater than one goal.

Inter have lost five of their last seven games in Serie A and have suffered 11 league defeats this season.

The Nerazzurri had not lost 11 games in a Serie A campaign since 2016/17, a season in which they lost 14 times and had three different coaches. They have not lost 11 after 30 games since 2011/12, when they also had three coaches.

Romelu Lukaku's added-time penalty salvaged a 1-1 draw at Juve in the Coppa Italia semi-final first leg on 4 April. Lukaku and Samir Handanovič were both sent off after the penalty.

Inter's previous two goals before Robin Gosens' early strike in a 1-1 draw at Salernitana on 7 April had both been Lukaku penalties.

Lukaku has scored all 19 of his penalties for Inter; his last miss came on 26 August 2017 for Manchester United

Lukaku (four goals), Lautaro Martínez (three) and Henrikh Mkhitaryan (two) had struck Inter's previous nine goals before Gosens scored at Salernitana. He was the first player aside from that trio to find the net for the Nerazzurri since Matteo Darmian on 31 January and is Inter's only scorer in their last four league games.

Lukaku has nine goals in his last 14 games for club and country, including a hat-trick in Belgium's 3-0 UEFA EURO 2024 qualifying win against Sweden on 24 March and another strike in a 3-2 friendly win in Germany four days later. He has now scored a record 72 goals in 106 appearances for Belgium.

Nicolò Barella's opener at Benfica was his first Inter goal since a run of four in five games in October.

Martínez missed an early penalty in a 2-1 loss at Spezia on 10 March; the Argentinian has failed to convert four of his last eight spot kicks since 2021/22.

Martínez has nine goals for Inter in 2023 in all competitions, but has failed to find the target in his last eight appearances in all competitions.

Inter have kept ten clean sheets in 22 games in all competitions in 2023.

The Nerazzurri won the Italian Super Cup on 18 January, beating city rivals AC Milan 3-0.

On 4 January Edin Džeko scored the only goal as Inter defeated Serie A leaders Napoli, the first league loss of the season for the Partenopei. Džeko has scored 20 Serie A goals for Inter, all of them after turning 35; the club's other over-35 scorers combined have managed 19 goals. The striker, however, has not scored since.

A back injury restricted Milan Škriniar to a late cameo in the second leg against Porto, his sole appearance since he was forced off in the first leg against the Portuguese side.

Hakan Çalhanoğlu returned as a second-half substitute on Saturday having been out since being replaced with a thigh injury late in the first half of Türkiye's 2-0 home loss against Croatia in EURO 2024 qualifying on 28 March.

Benfica

Benfica were unbeaten in 16 games in all competitions until a 2-1 Portuguese Liga defeat at home to Porto on 7 April – a game in which they took an early lead thanks to an own goal.

That was the Eagles' first home loss in all competitions since a 1-0 reverse against the same opponents on 7 May 2022; they had won 18 of their 20 subsequent matches on their own ground.

The subsequent defeat by Inter made it successive losses for the first time since April 2022.

Benfica were also beaten on Saturday, conceding in the 94th minute to go down 1-0 at Chaves – a defeat that has trimmed their lead over Porto at the top of the Liga to four points with six games remaining. It is the first time the Lisbon club have lost three in a row in all competitions since October-November 2018.

Benfica had won 14 of their previous 16 matches before losing at Porto, including eight in a row and 12 of the previous 13.

The Eagles kept 11 clean sheets in that 16-game run, conceding only six goals, and had scored 23 goals in winning their eight fixtures before the defeat against Porto.

The Lisbon club have scored 114 goals in all competitions this season, conceding only 34.

Gonçalo Ramos is Benfica's top scorer this season with 25 goals in all competitions, two more than João Mário; they each have 17 in the league.

Ramos has six goals in his last eight Benfica appearances.

João Mário has scored in six of Benfica's last 11 league matches, ten goals in all. The 30-year-old midfielder has never managed more than six in any previous league campaign.

Benfica lost for the first time this season on 30 December, going down 3-0 at Braga in the Portuguese Liga.

That was the Eagles' only defeat of the campaign before the current three-game losing streak; their record otherwise is W37 D7.

Benfica bowed out of the Portuguese Cup on 9 February, however, losing their quarter-final at Braga 5-4 on penalties after a 1-1 draw. Gonçalo Guedes had given them the lead, his second goal since returning to the club in January.

Benfica have also been eliminated from the Portuguese League Cup, going out on goal difference after a 1-1 draw at Moreirense on 17 December.

Guedes, who returned to the club on loan from Wolverhampton Wanderers in January, marked his second Benfica debut with the final goal in a 3-0 win at Santa Clara on 21 January. However, he injured his knee in a 2-0 win at Vizela on 25 February, returning as a substitute on Saturday.

Julian Draxler has undergone ankle surgery after suffering an injury during Benfica's training session following the first leg at Club Brugge. He is not expected to play again this season, although the on-loan Paris Saint-Germain winger has remained in Lisbon for treatment.

Alexander Bah had to be replaced midway through the first half against Porto having injured his left knee in a tackle and has not played since.

Mihailo Ristić has been out since February with a thigh injury.

André Almeida, who joined Benfica in 2011, bade farewell to the club before the 3-0 home win against Casa Pia on 4 February.