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Real Madrid and Benfica look to settle the score in their Champions League knockout playoff matchup as they contest the second leg from the Bernabeu on Wednesday.
The Spanish giants hold a slim 1-0 lead from the first leg in Portugal, where Vinicius Jr's delightful goal was overshadowed by racial abuse allegations against Gianluca Prestianni of Benfica in the aftermath.
As a result, Prestianni will not take part today, and neither will Benfica boss Jose Mourinho who will be relegated to the stands of his old stomping grounds after being sent off in the first leg.
Madrid, for their part, are missing talisman Kylian Mbappe who is out for today's match with a knee injury.
The winner of this match will take on either Manchester City or Sporting CP in the Round of 16, while the loser will be eliminated from Europe.
The Sporting News is following the Real Madrid vs. Benfica match live, providing score updates, commentary, and analysis.
Real Madrid vs. Benfica score
Aggregate Score (Pregame) Goal scorers
Real Madrid 1 – –
Benfica 0 – –
Location: Santiago Bernabeu Stadium (Madrid, Spain)
Referee: Slavko Vincic (SLV)
Keep track of every game and every goal via SN's live Premier League scoreboard
Starting lineups (predicted):
Real Madrid (4-4-2, right to left): Courtois (GK) — Carvajal, Rudiger, Asensio, Carreras — Valverde, Guler, Tchouameni, Camavinga — G. Garcia, Vinicius Jr.
Benfica (4-2-3-1, right to left): Trubin (GK) — Dedic, Araujo, Otamendi, Dahl — Barreiro, Aursnes — Ludebakio, Sudakov, Schjelderup — Pavlidis.
Real Madrid vs. Benfica live updates, highlights from second leg
1 hour 30 mins to kickoff: Welcome to coverage of the second leg between Real Madrid and Benfica at the Bernabeu!
There is palpable tension between the sides in this upcoming match. The racial abuse allegations from the first leg made for an awkward finish to the match, but it is expected to have a different feel today, with there being more animosity than nervousness around the 90 minutes in the Spanish capital.
Real Madrid vs. Benfica kick off time
This Champions League knockout playoff second leg kicks off from the Bernabeu on Wednesday, February 25 at 9 p.m. local time in Madrid, Spain. Here's how that time translates across some of the major territories around the globe:
Date Kickoff time
USA/Canada Wed, Feb. 25 3 p.m. ET
USA/Canada Wed, Feb. 25 12 p.m. PT
UK Wed, Feb. 25 8 p.m. BST
Australia Thu, Feb. 26 7 a.m. AEST
India Thu, Feb. 26 1:30 a.m. IST
Real Madrid vs. Benfica lineups, team news
Real Madrid are without Kylian Mbappe who will sit out this match due to knee soreness, something he's been dealing with the last few months. Rodrygo has returned to training from his hamstring injury but is serving the final match of his red card suspension and so he will not be available either.
Dean Huijsen has picked up a calf injury and reportedly will not play, while Eder Militao, Jude Bellingham, and Dani Ceballos are all out for another few weeks.
Real Madrid projected starting lineup (4-4-2): Courtois (GK) — Carvajal, Rudiger, Asensio, Carreras — Valverde, Guler, Tchouameni, Camavinga — G. Garcia, Vinicius Jr.
Real Madrid subs: (Lineups released one hour prior to kickoff)
The biggest call for Jose Mourinho and acting Benfica boss for this match Joao Tralhao will be at the No. 10, where Rafa Silva was ineffective in the first leg and could be replaced by Georgiy Sudakov who performed well in the league phase win over Real Madrid.
Dodi Ludebakio will likely be the one to come in for the suspended Gianluca Prestianni who has been provisionally banned by UEFA while they investigate the racist abuse allegations from the first leg.
Benfica projected starting lineup (4-2-3-1): Trubin (GK) — Dedic, Araujo, Otamendi, Dahl — Barreiro, Aursnes — Ludebakio, Sudakov, Schjelderup — Pavlidis.
Benfica subs: (Lineups released one hour prior to kickoff)
Real Madrid vs. Benfica live stream, TV channel
Here is how to watch the match in some of the world's major regions:
Region TV Streaming
USA TUDN, UniMas Paramount+, Fubo
Canada — DAZN
UK TNT Sports 1 discovery+
Australia — Stan Sport
India Sony TEN 2, 3, 4 Sony LIV, Jio TV