Milan and Benfica battle it out on Wednesday 16 September in a bid to get a positive result in the Europa League. Only Juventus are a shorter price to win this competition than the Rossoneri, with Ruben Amorim hoping to make a favourable impression after a difficult time with Manchester United. They will look to make home advantage count at the San Siro.
The visitors' season started several weeks ago and they had to come through several qualifying rounds in order to reach the group stage. They will be battle hardened in Europe already and perhaps they can avoid defeat in Milan. We're looking forward to an entertaining clash and perhaps the best bet could be both teams to score in this game.
Milan v Benfica Betting Markets
Benfica finally take their place in the group stage of the 2026/27 Europa League after overcoming a number of hurdles to line up. They came back from losing 2-1 away to St Gallen to triumph 5-0. There was then a demolition of Hearts before a comprehensive aggregate success against Aarhus. They will head to the San Siro feeling confident.
However, Milan are clearly one of the best teams in one of the strongest domestic leagues in Europe. The Rossoneri have began the season in impressive style with wins against Torino and Venezia, with Ruben Amorim hoping to restore his reputation for being a successful manager. The bookies are anticipating an entertaining affair between two European powerhouses.
Milan are trading at odds of 2.10 to win the game. This suggests that they have a slightly less than 50% chance of landing a victory. The odds are quite attractive considering that their win at Torino had them registering four shots on target and restricting the Turin side to just one chance. They were then dominant when overcoming Venezia 2-0 with two late goals.
The Serie A outfit were close to securing a third consecutive win at the Juventus Stadium when leading 1-0 before being pegged back at the death. However, they did only have one shot on target in that clash and come into this match off the back of a difficult domestic encounter against Lazio.
Benfica have enjoyed stacks of matches already and they've been successful in the majority of them. Marco Silva has returned to Portugal in a bid to land glory with the team and there was plenty to like about their 3-0 victory away to Maritimo. However, there's a big difference when it comes to playing a higher quality side like this.
Goals Under/Over
We're comfortable backing Over 2.5 Goals in this clash between Milan and Benfica. The visitors have found their stride in terms of finding the net. At the time of writing, it has been five consecutive matches in all competitions where three or more goals have been scored. There were seven goals scored by the Portuguese giants when thrashing Casa Pia AC 7-0 and there's plenty of firepower in the ranks.
Benfica were also involved in two 3-1 victories against Aarhus, while two more recent domestic affairs also saw three goals scored. It's definitely worth considering the overs in an accumulator, especially as there's no real jeopardy in the game. Milan will certainly feel as though the onus is on them to attack.
Amorim's men were involved in a 2-1 win away to Torino although the subsequent two clashes involved just two goals being scored.
BTTS
BTTS Yes could also be a popular Europa League accumulator option. The odds are around the 1.61 mark which implies that there's a 60% chance that both teams will find the net. Milan managed to score five goals in their first three Serie A matches and two of these were on the road. It therefore makes sense that the Rossoneri will score at least once against opposition who will also play on the front foot.
Benfica might have had some modest opposition in the preliminary rounds of the Europa League, although this is a team who play entertaining and attacking football. That seven-goal salvo a few weeks ago laid down a marker and this team have found the net in all ten matches across every competition thus far.
The visitors are unlikely to park the bus in this fixture. It's an opportunity to test themselves against one of the competition favourites. It's possible that the game will descend into something of a shootout between the sides and perhaps BTTS Yes could be paid out by the time we get to half-time.
First Goalscorer
Goncalo Ramos made the switch from Paris Saint-Germain to Milan in the summer, with Ruben Amorim persuading his compatriot to join him at the San Siro. The 25-year-old has the potential to be a big success in Italy and he got off the mark with the opening goal against Venezia. When given the chance by PSG, there were plenty of times when the Portuguese international was able to find the net.
Alphadjo Cisse is a teenage sensation who may be given the opportunity to start this game, with the nineteen-year-old having registered a goal away to Torino and Juventus. There's plenty to come from the former Venezia player who may well be breaking into the Italy national squad based on some early form.
Benfica have lots of firepower themselves. Luxembourg midfielder Leandro Barreira was at the double when bagging two goals at Maritimo and he had previously scored in the Europa League game against Aarhus. There's a talented Argentine in the form of Gianluca Prestianni who has racked up six goals already this term. The twenty-year-old is set to enjoy a breakthrough season and could be worth considering on the anytime scorer market.
