Benfica vs Gil Vicente: Taça da Liga quarter-final at the Luz tonight

Why people are searching today

Benfica host Gil Vicente tonight at the Estádio da Luz in a Taça da Liga quarter-final. Kickoff is 20:45 on Thursday 29 October 2026, and Sport TV1 shows the match live in Portugal for subscribers [2]. Flashscore is also running live audio commentary on its website and app [2].

Most of the interest is in the team sheets. Marco Silva has changed seven players from the side that played at Santa Clara, and only Dahl, Lenglet, João Palhinha and Sudakov keep their places [1]. The expected starting eleven is Trubin; Dahl, Circati, Lenglet, El Karouani; Palhinha, Sudakov; Lukébakio, Echeverri, Schjelderup; Durán [1].

Samuel Soares, Bah, Tomás Araújo, Aursnes, Rafa Silva, Prestianni and Pavlidis are rested [1]. Kaminski is back from injury but is not yet fit for 90 minutes, so he starts on the bench [1].

The form behind the team sheets

Benfica come in on four straight wins, two in the Europa League and two in the league, after a defeat at the Estádio do Dragão [2]. They played away at Santa Clara on the Monday before this match, and their next league game is at home to Alverca [1]. The same report says Benfica also won a Youth League match the day before, though it gives no score [1].

Gil Vicente are less settled. They lost 1-0 at home to FC Porto in their last league round, but before that they had won three in a row, two in the league and one in the Taça de Portugal [2].

Luís Pinto has made four changes from the Porto game. Two more are forced. Elimbi is suspended, and Diogo Prioste cannot play because he is on loan from Benfica [1]. The report describes Pinto as more conservative with his rotation than Silva, which is a useful way to read the bench on both sides [1].

Head to head and odds

The two clubs met last season, and Benfica won 2-1 both at home and away [2]. This season Benfica beat Gil Vicente 3-1 at the Luz in the league [2].

Betano priced Benfica at 1.39 to win, 4.75 for a draw and 6.70 for a Gil Vicente win [2]. Flashscore says those prices were correct when its preview was published and may move before kickoff [2].

What to watch

Three things will decide how the night goes. The first is whether a rotated Benfica side can carry on a four-match winning run without its usual starters. The second is how Gil Vicente cope without Elimbi and Prioste, two players they cannot pick. The third is Kaminski's minutes, since he is coming back from injury and is not yet fit for a full match [1].

The league is the next test for both clubs. Benfica face Alverca at home next, and Gil Vicente's last result was the 1-0 defeat to Porto [1] [2]. A rotated side that wins tonight gives Silva more options for the weekend, while a Gil Vicente win would be a major upset given the prices.