Champions League in sight, Mourinho has a ‘trump card’ in Benfica v Braga | OneFootball

With the Champions League in sight, Mourinho has a ‘trump card’ for Benfica - Braga

Counting down to the clash against the Minho side, the Portuguese coach wants to move closer to achieving the goal of reaching the millionaire league

Eyeing a place in the Champions League, José Mourinho may have an essential trump card for Benfica - Braga

José Mourinho has no margin for error against Braga if he wants to take Benfica to next year’s Champions League. With that in mind, the Special One - allegedly very close to Real Madrid - hopes to keep benefiting from the impressive performances Leandro Barreiro has been delivering in recent months.

As newspaper A Bola highlighted, the Luxembourg midfielder has been one of the revelations of the season, proving to be one of the most important players in José Mourinho’s tactical system. On the other hand, the numbers posted by the No. 18 are living proof of that: in the last four matches, Barreiro started and played the full 90 minutes.

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In total, the Luxembourg international has been used in around 48 of the 53 matches Benfica have already played, showing the importance he has gained with the Sacred Mantle. However, it should be remembered that the midfielder only achieved this prominence after Mourinho’s arrival, as he saw potential in the player.

As the sports daily points out, physical availability, along with his versatility, have been the calling cards Leandro Barreiro has shown to convince José Mourinho. Highly valued by the Special One, the player has been used as an attacking midfielder, behind the striker, combining high pressing, ball recovery and presence in finishing areas.

So far this season, for Benfica, Leandro Barreiro - valued at €15 million - has already made 48 official appearances: 29 in Liga Portugal Betclic, 13 in the Champions League, three in the Portuguese Cup, two in the League Cup and one in the Super Cup. In the 2,851 minutes he has been on the pitch, the midfielder has scored five goals and provided seven assists.

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