Benfica rotate heavily vs Nacional — Barcelona analyze key absences and returns for UCL clash | OneFootball

The Portuguese side SL Benfica was unable to take much advantage of their very favorable position in their last UEFA Champions League Round of 16 match against FC Barcelona.

The Blaugranes were left with 10 men following the 22nd minute but were still able to get a 0-1 win, with Raphinha scoring the only goal of the game in the second half.

As the Catalans prepare for a challenging La Liga encounter against Osasuna ahead of the second leg, Benfica will face Nacional de Madeira, currently 13th in the Portuguese League.

Benfica have already announced their starting lineup for this fixture, which could offer Barcelona insights into Bruno Lage’s potential approach for the crucial return leg at Montjuïc on Tuesday.

Ángel Di María remains unavailable for the Nacional clash as he continues to recover from a muscle injury in his left thigh, which has sidelined him since early February and raises doubts about his availability against Barcelona.

However, Florentino Luís, who missed the first leg against Barcelona, has returned to the squad after recovering from injury. He has been named among the substitutes for the Nacional clash and could feature in the match.

In addition, Lage has opted to bench key attackers Vangelis Pavlidis and Kerem Aktürkoğlu against Nacional, preserving them for the second leg against Barcelona. This signals his intent to field a fresh and aggressive line-up at Montjuïc as they attempt to overturn the deficit.

Barcelona will be fully prepared for a tough battle on Tuesday, knowing that Benfica will come with a point to prove. However, with home advantage and the resilience shown in the first leg, the Blaugranes remain in a strong position to progress to the quarter-finals of the competition.