Real Sociedad continues to impress in Europe. Today, they defeated Benfica with the authority of giants in another great match.. A goal from Brais, one more, in the second half, keeps Imanol's team at the top of the group with seven points. Over three thousand fans who cheered on the squad at Da Luz will have a pleasant journey home.
After some initial minutes of probing where no one dominated, the home team scored on a counter, but fortunately, the play was disallowed for offside. Real Sociedad grew as the minutes passed. Kubo came close to scoring in a couple of short-range shots that went wide. Brais also found the net with a header, but he was in an offside position. Barrene's shot, which skimmed the post just before halftime, nearly gave Real the lead.
Real dominated more in the second half. Kubo had another close call, but he missed the finish, this time with his right foot. With Imanol's team commanding, a run from Barrene ended with a pass back for Brais, once again, to reach the area and score, putting the Basques in the lead. The goal proved for the visitors that they had confined the host team with a performance reminiscent of Salzburg, just controlling the ball and pressing the Lisbon defense. Kubo, in his typical play, hit the crossbar. However, the double European champions are a proud club that pressed Real hard. Remiro and the defenders were outstanding in stopping the Lisbon club from equalizing.
This squad continues to make us proud. Every time it steps onto the field, it excites and delights us. It trounced the Portuguese champion today as if it were a piece of cake. Three games, seven points. The round of 16 is getting closer and closer. Keep having fun. We are Real.
Match details:
SL Benfica: Trubin, Bah (Chiquinho, min.81), Antonio Silva, Otamendi (captain), Jurasek (Bernat, min.59), Neves, Aursnes, Rafa Silva, Neres (Gouveia, min.69), Joao Mario (Kokcu, min.46), and Musa (Cabral, min.46).
Real Sociedad: Remiro, Traoré (Aritz, min.70), Zubeldia, Le Normand, Aihen, Zubimendi, Merino, Brais Méndez, Barrene (Zakharyan, min.76), Take (Carlos Fernández, min.76), and Oyarzabal (captain) (Cho, min.92).
Goal: 0-1: Brais Méndez, min.63.
Referee: Clement Turpin (France). Booked Bernat for SL Benfica and Aritz and Merino for Real Sociedad.