Neil Lennon shares Rangers v Benfica ‘formidable’ prediction amid ‘treble’ verdict at Ibrox
Neil Lennon has shared his prediction ahead of Rangers’ Europa League clash against Benfica on Thursday 7 March.
The pair have an exciting, yet extremely brief, history with two prior meetings endings in 3-3 and 2-2 draws in the 2020/21 Europa League group stage.
Benfica have been in decent form in Liga Portugal, following Sporting CP closely at the top of the table but have recently succumbed to 2-1 and 5-0 losses to rivals Sporting and FC Porto.
Speaking via PLZ Soccer on Wednesday 6 March, Lennon was asked about Rangers’ chances of advancing in the competition, saying: “I don’t see why not. Benfica aren’t the same team that they were four or five years ago. They were beaten by Lisbon and Porto, but are still a formidable opponent.
“You want to be in the competition if you’re a Rangers player. Europa League, going for the Championship, going for the treble – you want to play in these games and I think they’ll come out of it better regardless if they go through or not.
Though, when pressed for an answer about who would win over the two legs by Peter Martin, he replied: “Benfica for me, just.”
Can Rangers bypass Benfica in the Europa League Round of 16?
The Gers should feel every bit of confidence that Philippe Clement can lead them through the next round of the European competition. However, the latest defeat to Motherwell will cast a shadow of doubt.
The Portuguese giants have fallen out of form just at the right time for Rangers, who have lost just one game since the controversial loss at Celtic Park in December.
Of course, fans of Old Firm rivals Celtic will be hoping for the Gers to be pummelled, with Clement closing in on Rangers’ second Scottish Premiership title in the last decade.
An away victory against Benfica will only bring back more confidence to Ibrox, with the Hoops the only likely team to be standing in the way of the Gers and the league title.
As Lennon says, there is a very real chance that Clement could lift the Treble with Rangers, having only joined the club in October after the torrid reign of Michael Beale at Ibrox.
Though the Belgian will not want to get too far ahead of himself, rather targeting each game as it comes, he will know that a win on Thursday night will take his side one step closer to massive success.
In other Rangers news, the Gers have a bright future to look forward to after what happened in the Scottish Youth Cup.
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