June 24, (THEWILL) – Benfica claimed a historic 1-0 victory over Bayern Munich in North Carolina, ending a 13-match winless run against the German giants whilst simultaneously claiming top spot in Group C of the FIFA Club World Cup. The Portuguese side’s triumph marked Bayern’s first-ever defeat in the competition, with Andreas Schjelderup’s first-half strike proving decisive in a match that saw both teams progress to the knockout stages.
Vincent Kompany made wholesale changes to his Bayern starting XI, rotating eight players with qualification already guaranteed. The tactical gamble backfired early when Manuel Neuer was forced into action within ten minutes to deny Ángel Di María, before the veteran goalkeeper could do nothing to prevent Schjelderup converting Fredrik Aursnes’ cutback. Bayern’s lacklustre opening 45 minutes saw them fail to register a single shot on target, leaving them trailing at the interval.
The German champions introduced Harry Kane, Joshua Kimmich and Michael Olise at half-time, with the substitutions immediately improving their tempo. Leroy Sané carved out Bayern’s clearest opportunity when Kimmich’s defence-splitting pass released him behind the Benfica backline, only for goalkeeper Anatoliy Trubin to produce a stunning save before also blocking Thomas Müller’s rebound attempt.
Bayern thought they had equalised when Kimmich’s low drive found the bottom corner, but the goal was disallowed after Kane was ruled offside and obstructing Trubin’s view. The Ukrainian goalkeeper continued his outstanding performance, denying Aleksandar Pavlović from close range before twice thwarting Sané in the closing stages to preserve Benfica’s advantage.
The result extended Benfica’s unbeaten streak to 16 matches and sets up a likely last-16 encounter with Chelsea, whilst Bayern will face Brazilian side Flamengo after their five-match winning run came to an unexpected halt. Both teams now prepare for the knockout phase of FIFA’s expanded club competition, with Benfica carrying momentum from their breakthrough victory against one of Europe’s most successful clubs.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
