Real Sociedad vs Benfica match facts

Unbeaten Real Sociedad are well placed to reach the UEFA Champions League knockout stages as they welcome Benfica, who are still without a point in Group D.

Real were 1-0 winners in Lisbon on Matchday 3, midfielder Brais Méndez scoring the only goal in the 63rd minute.

Méndez has now found the net in all three of Real's games, the 1-1 draw at home to the Italian club in their first game before a 2-0 victory in Salzburg. The Spanish side are level with Inter on seven points.

Last season's quarter-finalists Benfica have lost their first three games, at home to Salzburg on Matchday 1 (0-2) and 1-0 at Inter in a repeat of their 2022/23 last-eight tie, and are seven points behind Real and Inter with Salzburg third on three.

Matchday 3 was the sides' first fixture, and Real's first game against a Portuguese side since September 1992.

Form guide

Real Sociedad

Record vs Portuguese clubs: W4 D1 L2 F7 A5
Home record vs Portuguese clubs: W2 D1 L0

The reverse fixture in Lisbon was Real's first game against a Portuguese club since a 2-0 home win against Vitória SC in the 1992/93 UEFA Cup first round second leg, a result that was not enough to overturn a 3-0 first-leg defeat.

The Basque club had had more joy in their first tie against Portuguese opponents, retrieving a 1-0 first-leg loss at Sporting CP with a 2-0 victory in San Sebastian in the 1982/83 European Cup quarter-finals.

Real were also victorious on aggregate against Sporting in the 1988/89 UEFA Cup second round, all the goals coming in the Lisbon first leg where the Spanish side ran out 2-1 winners.

The team from San Sebastian are therefore still to concede a goal at home to Portuguese visitors, scoring four themselves (W2 D1).

Real are making their third Champions League group appearance, and a first since 2013/14.

Ten seasons ago, La Real finished fourth in Group A, which also included Manchester United, Bayer Leverkusen and Shakhtar Donetsk, having failed to win a game (D1 L5).

The Spanish side had reached the round of 16 on their debut in 2003/04, losing both legs 1-0 against Lyon.

This is La Real's fourth successive European campaign, equalling a club record set between 1979/80 and 1982/83.

Fourth in La Liga last season, the club's highest finish since 2012/13, Imanol Alguacil's side finished first in their Europa League section ahead of Manchester United but lost to eventual runners-up Roma in the last 16 (0-2 a, 0-0 h).

The Spanish side have won only five of their last 17 home European games (D6 L6).

Real have won only one of their previous eight home fixtures in the Champions League, group stage to final (D4 L3), beating Olympiacos 1-0 in their first game in the competition proper on Matchday 1 in 2003/04.

The Basque club's most successful UEFA campaign came in 1982/83, when they reached the European Cup semi-finals before being edged out 3-2 on aggregate by eventual winners Hamburg.

Benfica

Record vs Spanish clubs: W7 D9 L12 F31 A39
Away record vs Spanish clubs: W2 D3 L7

Benfica's last away game against a Spanish side was a memorable one, a 0-0 draw at Barcelona on Matchday 5 of the 2021/22 Champions League proving crucial in taking the Portuguese side through at their opponents' expense. Darwin Núñez had scored either side of a Rafa Silva goal to earn a 3-0 home win in Lisbon on Matchday 2.

That home win is one of only two Benfica victories in their last 20 matches with Spanish sides (D8 L10), since a 2-1 victory at Real Betis on 29 September 1982.

Benfica also won 2-1 at Atlético de Madrid in the 2015/16 Champions League group stage; that and the 1982 success at Betis are Benfica's only wins in their 12 away games against Liga clubs (D3 L7).

Benfica's two European Cup triumphs, in 1961 and 1962, both came against Spanish teams – Barcelona (3-2) and Real Madrid (5-3). More recently, they lost 4-2 on penalties to Sevilla in the 2013/14 Europa League final after a goalless draw in Turin.

This is Benfica's 18th group appearance in the Champions League, and a 13th in the last 14 seasons.

The Eagles reached the quarter-finals for a second successive season in 2022/23, losing to eventual finalists Inter in the last eight (0-2 h, 3-3 a). Benfica had finished first in Group H ahead of Paris Saint-Germain and Juventus before knocking out Club Brugge in the round of 16 (2-0 a, 5-1 h).

The 1-0 defeat at Inter on Matchday 2 was only Benfica's third loss in their last 19 European games outside Lisbon (W8 D8). Conversely, despite wins at Juventus, Maccabi Haifa and Club Brugge last season, the Eagles have managed only four victories in their last 16 away matches in the Champions League proper (D6 L6), the other at Ajax in 2021/22. However, they have won four of the last eight, drawing three, with the reverse in Milan ending a seven-game unbeaten away run.

European champions in 1961 and 1962, beating Barcelona and Real Madrid respectively, Benfica have lost in five other European Cup finals, most recently in 1990.

The Lisbon club were Portuguese champions for a record 38th time in 2022/23, Roger Schmidt's side finishing two points ahead of Porto to claim Benfica's first title since 2019.

Links and trivia

Kieran Tierney came on as a substitute as Arsenal drew 1-1 against Benfica in the 2020/21 UEFA Europa League round of 32 first leg in Rome and scored the Gunners' second goal in a 3-2 second-leg win in Piraeus in Greece; Rafa Silva got Benfica's second goal.

Have played in Spain:
Ángel Di María (Real Madrid 2010–14)
Nicolás Otamendi (Valencia 2014/15)
Gonçalo Guedes (Valencia 2017–22)
Juan Bernat (Valencia 2000–14)
Florentino (Getafe 2021/22 loan)

Di María scored 37 goals in 194 appearances in all competitions for Madrid, winning the 2011/12 La Liga title and the Copa del Rey in 2010/11 and 2013/14. He was also Player of the Match in their 4-1 extra-time victory against Atlético de Madrid in the 2014 UEFA Champions League final in Lisbon.

Di María scored Madrid's first goal in a 2-1 away Liga victory against Real Sociedad on 18 September 2010. His record against the Basque club with Madrid was W4 D1.

Part of Valencia's 2019 Copa del Rey-winning side, Guedes faced Real Sociedad eight times and has never lost (W3 D5).

Bernat, by contrast, tasted defeat in all three games against Real while at Valencia.

Has played in Portugal:
André Silva (Porto, 2011–17)

André Silva's Porto drew 1-1 home and away against Benfica in the 2016/17 Portuguese Liga, his sole full season in the first team.

Have played together:
Álvaro Odriozola & Arthur Cabral (Fiorentina 2021/22)

Latest news

Real Sociedad

Real Sociedad's record after ten league games is W5 D4 L3. They conceded in added time to lose 1-0 at home to Barcelona on Saturday.

That ended La Real's 17-match unbeaten home run in all competitions (W10 D7), since losing to Valladolid by the same scoreline on 5 February. They had won four of their previous seven home games in all competitions including the three before the weekend loss.

The Basque club were held 2-2 at Rayo Vallecano on 29 October, conceding an added-time equaliser. Mikel Oyarzabal scored both goals for the visitors.

Oyarzabal is Real Sociedad's top scorer this season with seven goals in all competitions. Takefusa Kubo and Brais Méndez are on five goals each.

Oyarzabal has six goals in 12 Liga games, two more than in his 23 league appearance last season.

Real Sociedad started the 2023/24 La Liga season with three consecutive draws but the result at Rayo was only their second draw in their 13 subsequent matches in all competitions (W8 L3) – the other against Inter on Matchday 1.

On 1 November a Carlos Fernández goal earned a 1-0 win at sixth-tier Buñol in the first round of the Copa del Rey. It was the striker's second goal this season in all competitions.

Real Sociedad have lost only three of their 16 matches this season in all competitions.

The first two defeats came in Madrid, and both by a 2-1 scoreline – at Real Madrid on 17 September and Atlético de Madrid on 8 October.

Real Sociedad have kept a clean sheet in seven of their 16 matches this season including three of the last five and six of the last nine.

Imanol Alguacil's side have scored in every game this season bar two, a 0-0 Liga draw at Las Palmas on 25 August and Saturday's loss to Barcelona.

Brais Méndez, who has five goals in his last ten games in all competitions, is the second Spanish player to score in his first three UEFA Champions League games, after AC Milan's José Mari in 2000/01.

The Spanish side's Matchday 1 squad featured 11 academy graduates – five of them, Ander Barrenetxea, Oyarzabal, Robin Le Normand, Martin Zubimendi and Igor Zubeldia, in the starting line-up.

Real's team against Salzburg on Matchday 2 included six youth players in the starting XI – Le Normand, Zubeldia, Ahien Muñoz, Zubimendi, Barrenetxea and Oyarzabal. All also started in Lisbon on Matchday 3.

Odriozola started against Buñol his first game since 27 September due to a hamstring injury. He was not involved on Saturday.

Kieran Tierney was taken off with a thigh injury in the first half of the 3-0 win at home to Athletic Club on 30 September and has not played since.

On-loan André Silva recovered from a muscle injury sustained at the end of last season with Leipzig to make his Real debut as a substitute against Athletic and also came on against Atlético. The forward suffered a calf injury in training on 16 October and has not played since.

Defender Jon Pacheco missed Saturday's defeat.

On 12 October, Le Normand, Mikel Merino and Oyarzabal started Spain's 2-0 home win against Scotland in UEFA EURO 2024 qualifying. Three days later, Le Normand played 90 minutes and Oyarzabal was a half-time substitute as Spain won 1-0 away to a Norway side featuring Benfica midfielder Fredrik Aursnes to book their place in next summer's tournament.

Benfica

Benfica have won 11 of their 16 games in all competitions in 2023/24 (D1 L4).

On Saturday they were 2-0 Portuguese Liga winners at Chaves thanks to second-half goals from Fredrik Aursnes, his second of the season matching last season's total, and João Mário with a penalty. The latter failed to find the net in his first nine matches in all competitions in 2023/24 but now has three goals in his last five appearances.

The Eagles were 2-0 winners at Arouca in their first Portuguese League Cup group stage on 31 October thanks to goals from Ángel Di María and Arthur Cabral.

Cabral's goal was his second for Benfica. He has played 12 match in all competitions – both goals coming in his last five appearances.

On 28 October the Lisbon club conceded a late equaliser to draw 1-1 at home to Casa Pia, João Mário opening the scoring with his second goal of the season.

The Eagles started the season with a 2-0 win against Porto in the Portuguese Super Cup on 9 August.

Di María, who returned to Benfica this summer, scored the first goal on his second club debut. He was also on target in the first game of the Liga campaign, a 3-2 loss at Boavista on 14 August.

Di María is Benfica's top scorer with seven goals in all competitions, three more than Petar Musa and Rafa Silva.

Alexander Bah has missed the last three matches due to a toe injury while Orkun Kokçu did not play due to a foot problem.

Forward Musa came on on Saturday, his first appearance since Matchday 3 due to illness.

David Neres limped out of the home match against Casa Pia with a knee injury and has not played since.

Nicolás Otamendi scored the only goal as Argentina beat Paraguay in 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifying on 12 October.

The same day, Aursnes was on target in Norway's 4-0 UEFA EURO 2024 qualifying win in Cyprus.

João Neves made his debut for Portugal as a substitute in a 5-0 EURO 2024 qualifying win away to Bosnia and Herzegovina on 16 October.

Roger Schmidt was voted coach of the 2022/23 season in the latest Liga Portugal Awards.