Bayern v Benfica facts

The omens all favour Bayern München as they bid to book their place in the round of 16 against Benfica, who need a first win against the German club to maintain their own hopes of a top-two finish in Group E.

• Goals early in each half from Robert Lewandowski (10) and former Benfica midfielder Renato Sanches (54) gave Bayern a 2-0 success in Lisbon in their opening fixture, extending their long unbeaten run against Benfica.

• The German club are now unbeaten in nine matches against their Portuguese opponents, and moved top of Group E with a 2-0 defeat of AEK Athens last time out. Bayern have ten points, two ahead of Ajax, with Benfica on four; AEK are bottom having lost all their games.

• That means Bayern will be through to the round of 16 for the 11th season running if they draw and will clinch first place if they win and Ajax do not do likewise at AEK; Benfica must win to maintain a chance of a top-two finish.

Previous meetings
• This season aside, the teams have met in four previous two-legged ties – and Bayern have won all of them, including the quarter-final of their victorious 1975/76 European Champion Clubs' Cup campaign and the second round of the 1981/82 competition. In both instances a goalless first leg in Lisbon was followed by a big Bayern win in Munich.

• Jürgen Klinsmann was the standout performer in the clubs' 1995/96 UEFA Cup third round tie. The striker scored all four goals in Bayern's 4-1 home first-leg victory, then added two more in a 3-1 Lisbon success. Bayern went on to beat Bordeaux in the final, Klinsmann finishing with a competition-record 15 goals for the season.

• Most recently, Bayern were 3-2 aggregate victors in the 2015/16 UEFA Champions League round of 16, a 1-0 win in Munich preceding a 2-2 draw in Portugal, Thomas Müller scoring the decisive second goal.

Form guide
Bayern
• Having opened Group E with that 2-0 win at Benfica, Bayern were held to a 1-1 draw by Ajax in their first home game. A pair of 2-0 victories against AEK, the first in Greece, took them to the top of the standings.

• The 2-0 home win against AEK was Bayern's first European success in Munich in four games. They won their first four in 2017/18, drawing with Sevilla in the quarter-final second leg and losing to Real Madrid in the semi-final first leg before this season's draw against Ajax.

• Champions of Germany for a record 28th time last season – with an unprecedented sixth successive Bundesliga title – Bayern are in the group stage for the 22nd time.

• The Munich club have reached the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals or better in each of the last seven seasons. They last failed to progress from the initial group section in 2002/03, although they missed out altogether on the UEFA Champions League in 2007/08.

• For the second year in a row Bayern's campaign was ended by Real Madrid in 2017/18, via a 4-3 aggregate semi-final defeat.

• Bayern have suffered only two defeats in 27 matches with Portuguese clubs, both against Porto. In the 2014/15 UEFA Champions League quarter-finals, they went down 3-1 in the first game in Portugal, but turned the tie round spectacularly with a 6-1 second-leg success in Munich. They also lost to Porto in the 1987 European Cup final, 2-1 in Vienna.

• The Munich club have won ten of their 12 home games against Portuguese visitors, drawing the other two. They are on a four-game winning streak, scoring 15 goals in the process.

Benfica
• Benfica bounced back from losing to Bayern by defeating AEK 3-2 in Athens on matchday two. They then lost 1-0 at Ajax before a 1-1 home draw against the Dutch club.

• Victory in Greece ended Benfica's eight-match losing run in the UEFA Champions League, group stage to final – a Portuguese record.

• Benfica have still won only three of their last 15 continental fixtures (D3 L9).

• Benfica kicked off this season in the third qualifying round with a 2-1 aggregate win against Fenerbahçe (1-0 home, 1-1 away). The first leg ended a run of seven successive European defeats – the Eagles failing to score in six of those, including the last five. PAOK were then defeated 5-2 over two legs in the play-offs (1-1 home, 4-1 away).

• Before this season, Benfica had lost four successive European away games, all without scoring, and were without a win in five. Despite the victories at PAOK and AEK, they have won only three of their last 12 fixtures outside Portugal (D2 L7).

• Benfica finished bottom of their section in 2017/18, losing all six games – the 20th time a club has gone through a UEFA Champions League group stage without picking up a point.

• Portuguese Liga runners-up in 2017/18, Benfica are in the UEFA Champions League group stage for the 14th time – and the ninth season in a row.

• The Lisbon giants have reached seven European Cup finals, winning the trophy in 1961 and 1962.

• Benfica have lost their last three matches in Germany, where their overall record is W2 D6 L15. They were also defeated on penalties in Stuttgart by PSV Eindhoven in the 1988 European Cup final.

Links and trivia
• Renato Sanches made 24 Portuguese Liga appearances for Benfica in 2015/16, his sole season in the first team before a move to Bayern.

• James Rodríguez scored 25 goals in 65 league appearances for Porto between 2010 and 2013, including a penalty in a 3-1 defeat of a Vitória SC side then coached by current Porto boss Rui Vitória in January 2012.

• Luisão scored past Manuel Neuer, then of Schalke, in the 2010/11 UEFA Champions League group stage while Eduardo Salvio beat Stuttgart's Sven Ulreich in a 2-0 Benfica triumph in the 2010/11 UEFA Europa League round of 16 second leg.

• Have played in Germany:
Odisseas Vlachodimos (Stuttgart, 2011–16)
Haris Seferović (Eintracht Frankfurt, 2014–17)

• Seferović was coached by Niko Kovač at Eintracht between 2015 and 2017.

• Vlachodimos' Stuttgart team-mates at youth level included Serge Gnabry and Joshua Kimmich, while he stepped up to the senior side following Ulreich's summer 2015 departure for Bayern.

• International team-mates:
Renato Sanches & Pizzi, Rafa Silva, Rúben Dias (Portugal)

• Rafa Silva and Renato Sanches were both in Portugal's victorious UEFA EURO 2016 squad.

• Vlachodimos and Serge Gnabry were part of the Germany squad that won the 2017 UEFA European Under-21 Championship.

• Müller's hat-trick helped Germany to a 4-0 defeat of a Portugal side including André Almeida in the 2014 FIFA World Cup group stage, Matt Hummels scoring the other goal. Neuer and Jérôme Boateng were also in the Germany side.

Latest news

Bayern
• Robert Lewandowski made his 100th appearance in UEFA club competition on matchday four.

• Lewandowski's next goal in the UEFA Champions League, group stage to final, will be his 50th; he would be the seventh player to reach that landmark.

• Mats Hummels, Javi Martínez and James Rodríguez will all make their 50th UEFA Champions League appearances when they next feature in the competition.

• Bayern's six-game unbeaten run in all competitions was ended by a 3-2 loss at Dortmund on 10 November, a result that meant the champions slipped seven points behind the Bundesliga leaders. Lewandowski had twice given Bayern the lead against his former club.

• The Munich side were held 3-3 at home by Fortuna Düsseldorf on Saturday despite leading 2-0 and 3-1. Thomas Müller scored twice for Bayern, doubling his Bundesliga total for the season; Fortuna's Dodi Lukebakio became the first opposition player to score a Bundesliga hat-trick against Bayern since Schalke's Ebbe Sand in April 2001.

• Lewandowski, who missed Poland's last UEFA Nations League game in Portugal on 20 November with a knee problem but returned for Bayern on Saturday, has scored 15 goals in 17 Bayern appearances this season.

• Substitute Müller won his 100th cap for Germany in a 2-2 UEFA Nations League draw against the Netherlands on 19 November.

• Niklas Süle, with his first international goal, and Serge Gnabry were on target in Germany's 3-0 friendly win against Russia on 15 November.

• James suffered a knee injury on 13 November and is expected to be out for several weeks.

• Arjen Robben was out for three weeks because of knee problems before returning as a second-half subsitute on Saturday.

• Thiago Alcántara has been sidelined after suffering an ankle injury at Rödinghausen on 30 October.

• Corentin Tolisso, part of the victorious France squad at this summer's FIFA World Cup, suffered torn cruciate ligaments in his right knee in the 3-1 win against Bayer Leverkusen on 15 September.

• Kingsley Coman suffered an ankle injury that required surgery in a 3-1 win against Hoffenheim on 24 August, the first day of the Bundesliga season, but is back in team training.

• Niko Kovač claimed silverware in his first competitive game as Bayern coach with a 5-0 defeat of his former club Eintracht Frankfurt in the German Super Cup on 12 August – the third year in a row the Munich club have won the competition following three successive defeats.

Benfica
• Benfica ended a run of four games without a victory (D1 L3) – their longest winless run since February/March 2012 – with a 3-1 success at Tondela on 11 November.

• The Eagles beat second division Arouca 2-1 in the last 32 of the Portuguese Cup on Thursday, Rafa Silva scoring an added-time winner.

• Jonas also scored against Arouca, the fourth successive Benfica game in which he had found the net.

• Eduardo Salvio, who made his 250th Benfica appearance on matchday three, has been out since matchday four with a sprained ankle.

• João Filipe has not played since 23 October due to an ankle sprain.

• Cristián Lema (adductor) has been sidelined since 15 October.

• Filip Krovinović had been sidelined by a knee injury since January before playing the first half against Arouca on Thursday.

• Haris Seferović's hat-trick helped Switzerland come from two down to beat Belgium 5-2 on 18 November and claim a place in the UEFA Nations League Finals.

• Odisseas Vlachodimos made his Greece debut in a 1-0 UEFA Nations League win against Finland on 15 November.

• Andrija Živković provided two assists and Ljubomir Fejsa came off the bench for his first international appearance since October 2016 as Serbia beat Lithuania 4-1 in the UEFA Nations League on 20 November to secure promotion to League B.

• João Félix set up the only goal in Portugal's defeat of Poland in the 2019 UEFA European Under-21 Championship play-off first leg on 16 November, although his side failed to reach the finals after a 3-2 home second-leg reverse.

• Nicolás Castillo scored a penalty in Chile's 4-1 defeat of Honduras in a 20 November friendly.

• On 25 September 37-year-old defender Luisão ended his contract by mutual agreement and announced the end of his playing career after 15 seasons at Benfica.