It only took 16 days for Benfica to potentially throw away the whole season. After being eliminated from the Portuguese Cup and coming close to losing the national championship title, Roger Schmidt's men have now bid farewell to the Europa League.

The reds arrived at the second leg of the quarter-finals with an advantage, thanks to the victory they had achieved at Luz, 2-1. However, they faltered, allowed Francis Moumbagna to tie the tie near the 90th minute and ended up 'falling' to Marseille in the penalty shootout.

The French pressing, the Portuguese enduring

Although Roger Schmidt had guaranteed, on the eve of the match, that Benfica would play to win, the truth is that, in the first half, he opted to give the initiative of the game to Marseille, exposing themselves to some moments of 'pressure'. So much so that, in the eighth minute, Anatoliy Trubin had to 'fly' to deny Ilman Ndiaye a goal.

In the attack, the reds placed great part of their hopes in David Neres, who was always their main 'agitator', exploring the weaknesses of Chancel Mbemba, ex-FC Porto. At the 16th minute, he was at the origin of the team's first great opportunity, assisting a dangerous shot by Rafa Silva.

This was, moreover, one of the few situations in which the club from Luz managed to cause some 'shivers' to Pau López. The French, on the other hand, had more of the ball, but even so they did not bother the opposing goalkeeper again, since Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang's attempts did not hit the target.

The night of the goalkeepers

The French pressure continued in the second half. Right at the beginning, a penalty was claimed for a supposed handball by António Silva, after a shot by Ilman Ndiaye, which was not called (and rightly so). This was followed by a shot by Geoffrey Kondogbia, which did not go far from the goal.

Just like in the first half, Benfica always showed themselves to be more dangerous starting from the left wing, and it was precisely from there that, at the 58th minute, Fredrik Aursnes went to the center and shot at the side netting. In response, Anatoliy Trubin once again said 'present', grabbing a 'shot' by Amine Harit.

At the 69th minute, a new controversial move in the reds' penalty area. Faria Moumbagna shot and the ball hit Alexander Bah's arm. However, Felix Zwayer understood that there were no reasons to point to the 11-meter mark. Moments later, Trubin, with a 'monstrous' save, once again held the result.

But the 'madness' did not stop there. At the 74th minute, it was Pau López's turn to show himself, deflecting two consecutive shots, by Rafa Silva and Ángel di María, making Marseille believe that it was possible to tie the tie... which happened, at the 79th, by Francis Moumbagna, so the game went to extra time and, then to penalty kicks.

There, the home team was stronger, and scored by Joaquín Correa, Geoffrey Kondogbia, Leonardo Balerdi and Luis Henrique, while, on the other side, Ángel di María shot at the post and António Silva into the hands of Paul López, so they will face Atalanta in the next phase.

Moment of the game: At the time of all decisions, Ángel di María faltered. The Argentine international wasted the first penalty kick of the 'tie-breaker', emptying Benfica's already damaged hopes, while inflating Marseille's.

Lineups

Marseille: Pau López; Chancel Mbemba, Leonardo Balerdi, Samuel Gigot, Emran Soglo; Jordan Veretout, Geoffrey Kondogbia, Azzedine Ounahi; Amine Harit, Ilman Ndiaye and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.

Benfica: Anatoliy Trubin; Alexander Bah, António Silva, Nicolás Otamendi, Fredrik Aursnes; Florentino Luís, João Neves, Rafa Silva; Ángel di María, David Neres and Casper Tengstedt.

Preview

Eliminated from the Portuguese Cup and seven points behind the leader of the I League, Sporting, with only five rounds to go until the end of the season, Benfica places all its hopes in the Europa League, where it is in a privileged position to guarantee a place in the semi-finals.

The reds travel, at the beginning of the night this Thursday, to the Orange Vélodrome to face Marseille, one week after the duel held at the Luz stadium, from which they emerged victorious, 2-1.

Rafa Silva and Ángel di María were the authors of the goals of the eagles' triumph. However, a precise shot by Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, after 67 minutes of play, kept the tie open.

Roger Schmidt's men will enter the field, moreover, knowing beforehand that, if they move forward, they will face Liverpool or Atalanta, and that, before the rematch, the latter are at an advantage over the former, 0-3.

The Marseille-Benfica will be refereed by the German judge Felix Zwayer, and you can follow it, live, starting at 8:00 pm (Continental Portugal time), on Desporto ao Minuto.

Leia Também: Roger Schmidt already thinks about the Europa League final: "It is our dream" (Portuguese version)