Chelsea welcome Jose Mourinho back to Stamford Bridge when they host Benfica in the UEFA Champions League on the back of successive Premier League defeats.
Enzo Maresca’s side were beaten 3-1 in their first Champions League game of the season at Bayern Munich, and things have not improved since then, with losses to Manchester United and Brighton and Hove Albion, which both saw the Blues have a player sent off, sandwiched by an EFL Cup win over Lincoln City.
Former Chelsea boss Mourinho took over for a second spell as Benfica coach following their stunning collapse against Qarabag in the first round of league phase fixtures. Benfica surrendered a 2-0 lead to lose 3-2 at home to the Azerbaijani side.
The return of Mourinho will add a sense of theatre to proceedings in west London. The Sporting News betting preview has all the latest odds, tips and predictions for this clash.
Chelsea vs. Benfica Match Preview
Chelsea are dealing with injuries at the back and further forward, with talisman Cole Palmer still unavailable.
They are unsurprisingly the favourites to get back to winning ways in this one, but will likely have to work hard to claim all three points, with Mourinho sure to make his team difficult to break down.
Benfica have won two of their three games domestically since Mourinho replaced Bruno Lage, drawing the other. They have the quality to hurt Chelsea and, as such, a draw that would increase the scrutiny on Maresca seems a likely outcome.
The Sporting News Score Prediction for Chelsea vs. Benfica
Chelsea 1-1 Benfica
Chelsea vs. Benfica Lineups
Here’s how we think these two sides will line up at Stamford Bridge.
Romeo Lavia could come back into the Chelsea team in place of Andrey Santos in midfield, while at the back Jorrel Hato may be rested with an eye on Liverpool at the weekend.
Mourinho has the option of bringing Enzo Barrenechea back into his midfield. The Argentine was on target in Benfica’s defeat to Qarabag.
Chelsea predicted lineup vs. Benfica
(4-3-3, right to left)
Sanchez (GK) — James, Chalobah, Badiashile, Cucurella — Lavia, Caicedo, Enzo — Gittens, Joao Pedro, Pedro Neto
Injured: Tosin Adarabioyo, Wesley Fofana, Cole Palmer, Liam Delap, Levi Colwill, Dario Essugo
Suspended: Mudryk
Benfica predicted lineup vs. Chelsea
(4-2-3-1, right to left)
Trubin (GK) — Dedic, A. Silva, Otamendi, Dahl — Rios, Aursnes — Ivanovic, Sudakov, Schjelderup — Pavlidis
Injured: Bruma, Manu Silva, Bah
Suspended: None
Chelsea vs. Benfica winner odds, correct score betting
Chelsea are the favourites with best odds of 7/10 with Betway. The draw is priced up at 3/1 with the bookmaker, while Benfica Villarreal are out at 7/2.
Our 1-1 prediction is also at good odds with Betway, at 7/1, but here's the best available odds for five of the other most likely results.
| Score | Odds* | Bet With |
| Chelsea 2-1 | 15/2 | Bet365 |
| Chelsea 2-0 | 8/1 | SpreadEx |
| Chelsea 1-0 | 8/1 | SpreadEx |
| Chelsea 3-1 | 11/1 | Bet365 |
| Chelsea 3-0 | 12/1 | AK Bets |
*Click odds to bet direct with our selected partners. Odds correct at time of publish.
Chelsea vs. Benfica team news
- The absence of Palmer remains the most glaring for Chelsea, though the impressive recent performances of Estevao have provided some solace.
- Set to be suspended against Liverpool following his red card in the loss to Brighton, Trevor Chalobah will likely play the full game against Benfica.
- Fredrik Aursnes would be the leading candidate to give way if Barrenechea comes back into the Benfica XI.
Chelsea vs. Benfica bet builder tips
Our bet builder for this one includes the game to finish in a draw (3/1), both teams to score (4/6) and Vangelis Pavlidis to score at anytime for Benfica (13/5), which comes to overall odds of 10/1 with Betway.
You can check out the latest odds and bet directly with our selected partners using the bet builder tool below.
How to watch Chelsea vs. Benfica: Live stream, TV channel
- Date: Tuesday, September 30
- Venue: Stamford Bridge, London, England
- Time & TV/Stream: 8:00 p.m. | TNT Sports /Discovery Plus/Sky Go