Richard Ríos awaits green light for Casa Pia v Benfica | OneFootball

One of the problems José Mourinho needs to solve before the clash with Casa Pia is the duo that will line up in midfield. According to what has been learned, Leandro Barreiro remains doubtful and, with that in mind, the Benfica coach needs a new 'partner' for Richard Ríos, but the solution may lie in something already quite familiar.

After José Mourinho, in the pre-match press conference, revealed that Barreiro had not returned in the best condition, newspaper A Bola reports that the solution is to rest the Luxembourger and go with a new duo in the deeper area of midfield, with Richard Ríos set to appear alongside Enzo Barrenechea.

However, as the same source adds, the partnership formed by the Colombian and the Argentine, which had held down a starting spot at Benfica since the beginning of the season, will only go ahead if Leandro Barreiro is not fit to play. At the moment, the Luxembourger is racing against time, but the odds are not very favorable.

Unfortunately for José Mourinho, Leandro Barreiro is not the Special One's only headache. As reported this Monday, Tomás Araújo is definitely out for the match against Casa Pia, forcing the Portuguese coach to make further changes in the Eagles' central defense. To make matters even worse, the player wearing number 44 will also miss the home game against Nacional and is a doubt for the derby.

This season, playing for Benfica, Richard Ríos — valued at 22 million euros — has already made a total of 39 official appearances: 21 in the Liga Portugal Betclic, 12 in the Champions League, three in the Portuguese Cup, two in the League Cup and one in the Super Cup. In the 3,110 minutes he has been on the pitch, the number 20 has recorded four goals and five assists.

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