A very frustrating season for the Eagles. Investment was big and expectations were very high, but in the end ‘Encarnados’ could not give more than a 3rd place to the fans.
Benfica had such an impact on the transfer market, bringing big names like Éverton, Otamendi, Vertonghen, Waldschmidt or the promising talent Darwin, but, most importantly, signing with coach Jorge Jesus, the fans celebrated as if they were already champions before playing.
The higher they climb, the harder they fall. Benfica’s season is considered a big failure (regardless of result in upcoming cup final), because the club dropped too many points for such a strong squad.
The months of January and February brought a massive Covid problem affecting many crucial players at the same time. That and a couple of crucial injuries resulted in a big sequence of negative results: Benfica dropped 15 points in just six weeks.
From March on, Benfica only had a big upset (home defeat to Gil) and a home draw against Porto: the rest was a strong sequence of wins, which doesn’t serve as consolation for the fans, but may give them hopes for a strong season next year.
Midfielder Weigl was perhaps the most consistent unit on the squad in the entire season. Éverton was disappointing for most time, but showed his immense talent in the last few weeks. Veríssimo had great impact after arriving in February.
