- Benfica form: Benfica have won 4 and lost 1 of their last 5 games in all competitions (W4, L1).
- Celtic form: Celtic have won 2 and lost 3 of their last 5 matches in all competitions (W2, L3).
- Top scorers: Dodi Lukebakio is Benfica's leading Europa League 2026/2027 scorer, while Mika Baur is Celtic's goal scorer so far in this competition.
The Eagles should take flight against the Hoops
Benfica will be looking to continue their strong start to the season when they welcome Celtic to Estadio da Luz on Thursday.
The Eagles have won their last 2 home matches and are generally a very difficult to unsettle when on home soil. Benfica beat AC Milan 0-2 away from home in the UEFA Europa League 2026/2027 in their opener before they were beaten 3-1 away from home by FC Porto in Primeira Liga. They then bounced back with a 2-0 victory at home to Vitoria Guimaraes in the Primeira Liga.
Celtic have played twice in Scotland since their opening group game and the results have been mixed – they lost 0-1 to Rangers at home in the Premiership before beating Motherwell 0-2 away from home in the Premiership.
Celtic can compete in spells but the hosts have too much quality
Martin O'Neill's men will have to play at their best in Portugal to get anything out of this game and that could mean sitting deep and trying to be compact and pragmatic. The Hoops will look to press the ball and trigger pressing from deep when Benfica have possession. Celtic can punish the Portuguese side if they can make errors in the dangerous areas of the pitch.
Celtic have won 2 of their last 3 away matches and will fancy their chances of getting a goal here. However, Benfica are a step above the opposition that Celtic have been facing domestically, they are a different proposition to the sides that are dominating the Scottish top-flight and will have too much for Celtic on Thursday.
The odds tell the story
Market view
Benfica are the strong favorites to win the game and they rightly should be. The odds on a home win are 1.24 and there is little sense in betting against the hosts here. Both Teams to Score – No is coming in at 1.91 which reflects the fact that Benfica should be able to keep Celtic at arm's length throughout the game.
Over 2.5 goals is priced at 1.44 which also looks a little generous in Benfica's favour. The Portuguese giants have the quality to win this game and the tempo that they will play at should force Celtic into errors.
Match outlook
Benfica will look to hurt Celtic on the counter and it's difficult to see Celtic getting much joy in Portugal. Benfica's high-pressing game and pacey wide players should make for an entertaining evening in Lisbon.
These sides have met 8 times in European competition over the years and they should be somewhat familiar with each other's ways.
Benfica will control possession for long periods of this match and we expect Marco Silva's men to keep Celtic quiet for large periods of the contest. A home victory with a few goals looks the most likely outcome.
- Jakub Kaminski has been Benfica's key man in the Europa League this season with 1 assist in 1 game, while Kieran Tierney has provided the spark for the visitors with 1 assist in 1 outing.
- Dodi Lukebakio is Benfica's main goal threat in this competition so far with 1 goal in 1 match and Mika Baur has been Celtic's only Europa League goal scorer so far with 1 in 1 game.
- The Czech striker also has 2 goals in his last 5 appearances in all competitions, so we're backing Baur to get on the scoresheet here.
