Benfica took a decisive step towards the Europa League league phase with a 6-1 win over Hearts in the first leg of the third qualifying round at Estádio da Luz on Thursday evening, a result confirmed on the official SL Benfica match centre. Rafa, Tomás Araújo, Pavlidis, Prestianni, Jhon Durán and Schjelderup scored for the home side in front of 60,776 supporters, with Renaud replying for the Scottish club.
The margin put Benfica in a commanding position before the second leg in Edinburgh, with BBC Sport’s report describing a one-sided contest in which the Portuguese side led 3-0 at half-time and could easily have scored more. The defeat is Hearts’ joint-heaviest in European competition, matching the scale of their 5-0 reverse to Tottenham 15 years ago.
How the goals went in
The opener arrived inside three minutes. Leandro Barreiro collected Alexander Bah’s pass and cut the ball back for Rafa to finish from close range, and Tomás Araújo then headed in a Sudakov corner in the 23rd minute to make it 2-0, beating his marker to the ball at the near post. Hearts struggled to hold their shape through the first half, and the third goal came from the penalty spot after Laurent Mendy brought down Prestianni, with Pavlidis sending the goalkeeper the wrong way in the 42nd minute.
Benfica nearly added a fourth before the interval, but a Barreiro goal was ruled out for offside, leaving the tie at 3-0 at the break. Vrancken changed the shape after the restart and Hearts looked more compact, but Prestianni intercepted a loose pass and curled in a fourth in the 59th minute to restore the three-goal cushion.
Tom Renaud gave the travelling support something to remember with a low finish in the 72nd minute after a build-up involving Guendouz, making it 4-1 and briefly giving the tie a different complexion. Jhon Durán, introduced as a substitute, then lashed in a fifth in the 87th minute after a one-two with Schjelderup, and Schjelderup completed the scoring from the penalty spot in the fourth minute of added time after a VAR review awarded the kick for a handball by Oisín McEntee.
The official match record lists Benfica with 19 shots, 11 on target, and 67 percent possession, underlining the control Marco Silva’s side exercised for most of the evening. Prestianni was named man of the match and said afterwards that the tie must be treated as open, with the second leg to be approached as if the score were level.
The result leaves Wouter Vrancken without a win in his opening four games as Hearts head coach, a run that has coincided with heavy early-season fixtures and a series of defensive injuries. Hearts host Dundee United in the Scottish Premiership on Sunday afternoon before welcoming Benfica to Tynecastle Park on Thursday 13 August, kick-off at 19:45.
Benfica, for their part, turn to the domestic season first, hosting Académico Viseu in their Liga Portugal opener at Estádio da Luz on Sunday evening, before travelling to Edinburgh with a five-goal lead to protect. European club football is back in full flow less than three weeks after Spain’s extra-time win over Argentina in the World Cup final, World Cup 2026 results, with clubs across the continent now working through the qualifying rounds for the 2026-27 league phase.
