Benfica set to pay price for selling star players as Champions League exit looms

If you are a fan of Benfica, nostalgia is part of the journey. The long-range version reaches to when the club were truly kings of their continent, winners of the European Cup twice in the 1960s.

The modern version is seasonal. It’s about very fine players, making a swift impact and then departing. It’s about what’s left in their slipstream.

A 12-month rewind would carry nostalgic benfiquistas, as followers of Lisbon’s most celebrated sporting institution are known, to a proud modern peak. This time last year, Benfica were top of their domestic table and on a remarkable run, having dropped only two points out of a possible 39, surging towards a record-extending 38th league title.

They had topped their Champions League group, leaving Paris Saint-Germain in second spot and, in beating Juventus twice, they consigned the Italian giants to an early exit from the competition.

A year on, the picture is gloomier. The early exit from Group D of this Champions League is Benfica’s. They host Inter Milan on Wednesday facing the strong possibility of no European football at all in the new year. They have lost all four games so far.

This is some comedown. Benfica are lately used to falling out of club football’s most prestigious tournament at its business end and with a swagger. In 2021/22 and 2022/23, they left at the last-eight stage after high-scoring draws, 3-3 against Liverpool and Inter, who were both eventual finalists.

Why the sharp drop-off? Perhaps another glance back 12 months tells part of the story. Then, the World Cup was under way in Qatar and while benfiquistas could feel some pride in the presence there, with Portugal, of two of their young stars, defender Antonio Silva and striker Goncalo Ramos, there was also on