5 reasons Bayern Munich will beat Benfica in the UEFA Champions League

1) Unstoppable Lewandowski

Nobody in any first division across the world has scored as many league goals in 2021 as Lewandowski with 33. Add in European games and he's up to 41. The Golden Shoe he picked up for his record-setting 41 Bundesliga goals last season was just reward to go with the Best FIFA Men's Player award he'd received prior.

A 15-game scoring run in the Bundesliga briefly came to an end before Lewandowski's brace in victory over Leverkusen, and the 33-year-old has netted in each of his last six UEFA Champions League outings, grabbing a total of nine goals. That includes four in two this season against Barcelona and Dynamo Kyiv.

Undoubtedly one of the favourites for the Ballon d'Or after missing out last season due to its cancellation, Lewandowski has proven in recent years that he's the best goalscorer in the world and almost impossible to stop. Of the 51 club matches he's played since the start of 2020/21, he's been on the scoresheet in 39.

Benfica haven't been spared Lewandowski's wrath down the years, with the Polish striker boasting a haul of three goals from three starts against the Portuguese club. That includes one the last time Bayern were in the Portuguese capital to face the Eagles.

2) You can't stop them all

Even if you do manage to keep Lewandowski quiet in front of goal, opposition defences can't afford to do that at the expense of neglecting other players in this Bayern team. Müller, Sane, Gnabry and also Jamal Musiala are all on four goals for the campaign. Meanwhile, back-up striker Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting has seven at a rate of one every 28 minutes of playing time.

Sane in particular has been a standout performer with a direct hand in 11 goals in 12 appearances. The 25-year-old looks reborn under Julian Nagelsmann and now playing out on the left more. Doubling up with Alphonso Davies racing up and down that flank, there's some serious skill and speed to contend with.

Add to that the midfield presence of Joshua Kimmich and Leon Goretzka, as well as the spell that Manuel Neuer appears to cast on approaching attackers in goal, and Benfica will need far more than the miraculous appearance of their eagle Vitoria to whisk them away from the Mount Doom that is the Bundesliga champions.

3) Record scoring run

You have to go all the way back to February 2020 and a 0-0 draw against RB Leipzig for the last time Bayern drew a blank in any fixture. The 83 competitive matches since then have all seen the German champions score at least once, which is a new record for a team in Europe's top five leagues.

And their scoring record in Europe is no less formidable. That stands at 24 straight Champions League fixtures going back to early 2019 in which Bayern have registered a stonking 79 goals. That includes eight alone from their first two of this season, in Barcelona and at home to Kyiv. What started under Hansi Flick and led the team to a historic sextuple has now continued under Nagelsmann.

4) That time in Lisbon

What happens in Lisbon, stays in… Actually, no. What Bayern do in Lisbon tends to make major headlines around the world.

This game is the first time the Bavarians have returned to the Portuguese capital since August 2020. The opponents back then weren't Benfica or Sporting Lisbon, but Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain - both at Benfica's Estadio da Luz.

The latter was, of course, the 2019/20 Champions League final where Kingsley Coman scored the only goal to earn Bayern their sixth European crown and wrap up the club's second treble in their history.

But that wasn't even their most memorable game at that stadium. That came nine days earlier in the 8-2 thrashing of Barca, all courtesy of eight different players providing assists. It was also when the world truly began to appreciate the talent of Davies as he tormented Barcelona right-back Nelson Semedo.

5) Unbeaten against Benfica

Bayern and Benfica rank among the best football clubs in the world for membership and are both the most successful teams in their respective countries, but there's only ever been one winner when the two have met on a pitch.

The team from Munich have won seven of the 10 meetings across the European Cup, UEFA Cup and Champions League. The other three (all in Lisbon) were draws. The most recent encounters in the 2018/19 group stage saw Bayern win 2-0 in Portugal and then 5-1 back at the Allianz Arena, with Lewandowski getting three goals across the two ties.

The German champions' overall record against Portuguese opponents is 17 wins, nine draws and only two defeats - both against Porto. Just taking into account games against them in Lisbon, it's four wins and three draws.

You also can't forget Bayern's current run away from home against clubs from any nations. Nineteen games without defeat on their travels is a Champions League record and goes all the way back to September 2017. And of the last 14, they've won 13.