Tomás da Cunha singles out two Benfica players who were well off the pace | OneFootball

The classic match between Benfica and Porto (2-2) was marked by Porto's tactical superiority and below-expected performances from some of Benfica's players. According to Tomás da Cunha, Nicolás Otamendi and Anatoliy Trubin were not up to the task.

"Porto's low build-up (Diogo Costa diamond, center-backs and Alan Varela, available full-backs) left no chance for Benfica's pressure. They connected with Deniz Gül (surprise) and found space to accelerate. Pietuszewski worked magic. Otamendi and Trubin not at classic level", he wrote on the social network 'X'.

The analyst praised Francesco Farioli's team's effectiveness in decisive moments: “Porto did, in a few minutes, what they hadn't managed in other classics against Benfica. They connected with the forward (excellent Gül anticipating and attracting Otamendi), set up Alan Varela to deliver a great ball and exploit Froholdt's break. Barrenechea was immediately out of the play”.

Tomás da Cunha believes that the Eagles "reacted late, especially considering the performances of Rafa and Prestianni, but Mourinho gave more arguments to Benfica. Lukebakio made his move, Ivanovic exists and imagined the 2-2. Barreiro is indispensable to surprise from the back”.

“Barrenechea and Ríos, as a pair, fall short”, it can be read. The draw leaves the Eagles (59) seven points behind the rival (66).

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇵🇹 here.