1993–94 S.L. Benfica season

Benfica
1993–94 season
President Jorge de Brito
(until 7 January 1994)
Manuel Damásio
Head coach Toni
Stadium Estádio da Luz
Primeira Divisão 1st
Taça de Portugal Quarter-finals
Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira Runners-up
European Cup Winners' Cup Semi-finals
Top goalscorer League:
João Pinto (15)
All:
João Pinto (18)
Highest home attendance 80,000 vs Parma
(29 March 1994)
Lowest home attendance 15,000 vs Braga
(17 October 1993)
Home colours

The 1993–94 season was Sport Lisboa e Benfica's 90th season in existence and the club's 60th consecutive season in the top flight of Portuguese football. It involved Benfica competing in the Primeira Divisão and the Taça de Portugal. Benfica qualified for the European Cup Winners' Cup by winning previous Portuguese Cup.[1] It covers the period between 1 July 1993 to 30 June 1994.

The season was marked by the events in his pre-season, as the club only made three signings. More importantly, however, the club lost regular starter Paulo Sousa and common substitute António Pacheco to Sporting CP due to unpaid salaries. Expectations around Benfica were not high, as Sporting and Porto were deemed the main contenders. After a poor start, however, a six-game winning streak granted them the top position in the league table. After going 15 league games unbeaten, a loss in April at Salgueiros and a draw at home against Estrela da Amadora made it necessary to win at the Estádio José Alvalade to retain their first-place position; a hat-trick from João Pinto in a 6–3 win put the title only six points away. On 25 May, a win over Gil Vicente ended the title race, with the club winning a record 30th league title.

Season summary

The season that celebrated its 90th anniversary was also one of the club most tumultuous periods in recent history. In the summer, Paulo Sousa, João Pinto and António Pacheco unilaterally terminated their contracts, claiming unpaid salaries. While Pinto was successfully resigned with a pay increase, both Sousa and Pacheco never went back on their decision, subsequently moving to Lisbon rivals Sporting CP.

Sousa had been a frequent starter for Benfica, playing 35 games in the previous season and having joined the club as a 16-year-old.[2] Pacheco was utilized more as a substitute, but had still amassed over 160 league games for Benfica.[3] The players' "betrayal" and the increase in tension between the old rivals was labelled "Hot Summer of 1993", a clever throwback to the troubled times of the PREC, the post revolution in 1975.[4][5]

With almost no new signings, and having lost Sousa, Pacheco and Paulo Futre, the team led by Toni was not seen as favourite in the title race.[6] The season opened with the 1993 Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira, and with a win for both sides, a third match would be necessary.[7] In the league, Benfica started by sharing points with Porto in O Clássico, but then tied again against much easier opponents, like Estoril and Beira-Mar; both clubs that played a crucial role in the previous season's title race.[8] On the late part of September, the first win in the Primeira Liga kick-started a series of consecutive wins that helped the club climb from eighth in the league to first.[9] A big loss in Setúbal served as warning, with the Lisbon-side then adding more consecutive wins, opening a three-point gap by the New Year.[10]

In the first month of 1994, the club lost points against Gil Vicente and was eliminated from the Taça de Portugal by Belenenses,[11] though this was not enough to stop their momentum, continuing to defend their first place with consecutive wins.[12] In early March, with successive draws in the league and a hard-fought 4–4 draw in the quarter-finals of the Cup Winners' Cup,[13] the club look like would be surpass by Sporting on the title race, with the distance now reduced to just one point.[12] A loss against Salgueiros in April put both clubs equal on points, while in the European stage, the club was defeated by Parma in the semi-finals.[11][14]

Benfica entered the Derby de Lisboa on 14 May with just a one-point advantage in the league table, knowing that a loss would cost them first place. João Pinto had one of his best performances with Benfica, scoring a hat-trick that effectively ended the title race in his club's favour.[6] Only a few days later, away against Braga, the club secured its 30th league title, celebrating with the fans at the sold out Estádio Primeiro de Maio.[15][16]

Carlos Mozer, an undisputed starter during the season, narrated the events in the club almanac: "We won the title with great difficulty, because Sporting had a young but good team, while Porto had the experience. At Benfica, our squad was strong. There were veterans like William, Veloso and Isaías, that taught the younger ones, like Rui Costa or João Pinto; who still had the will and pace to run all game. The coach was Toni, who I knew back from 1989. Benfica did not start well, and amassed three straight draws. Then he started winning in a awful manner. We did not play well, but we were winning games, until the notorious game in Alvalade, the 6–3. Everybody said that Sporting was going to win, because they had a younger team, and we were older; so we would not endure the difficult terrain. When everything looked like to be on their favour; we, with great calm and experience, reversed the game with a great performance from João Pinto. In that season, I also remember the campaign in the Cup Winners' Cup. We reach the semi-finals, after that crazy 4–4 in Leverkusen. We were drawn against Parma, and the Italians were always difficult. We won in the Estádio da Luz, but there, in Italy; I was sent-off early, on the 20th minute, with a double yellow. The first was fair, the second was not. If with eleven players was already hard, with one less, it was even harder."[6]

Competitions

  Win   Draw   Loss   Postponed

Overall record

Competition First match Last match Record
G W D L GF GA GD Win % Source
Primeira Divisão 22 August 1993 2 June 1994 34 23 8 3 73 25 +48 067.65 [17]
Taça de Portugal 5 December 1993 30 January 1994 3 2 0 1 10 3 +7 066.67 [17]
Cup Winners' Cup 15 September 1993 13 April 1994 8 4 3 1 15 10 +5 050.00 [17]
Supertaça 11 August 1993 15 August 1993 2 1 0 1 1 1 +0 050.00 [17]
Total 47 30 11 6 99 39 +60 063.83

Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira

Primeira Divisão

League table

Pos
 Team
 Pld
 W
 D
 L
 GF
 GA
 GD
 Pts
Qualification or relegation
1 Benfica (C) 34 23 8 3 73 25+48 54 1994–95 UEFA Champions League Group stage
2 Porto 34 21 10 3 56 15+41 52 1994–95 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup First round 1
3 Sporting CP 34 23 5 6 71 29+42 51 1994–95 UEFA Cup First round

Source: Primeira Divisão
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored
1 Porto qualified for the Cup Winners' Cup as Portuguese Cup winners
(C) = Champion; (R) = Relegated; (P) = Promoted; (E) = Eliminated; (O) = Play-off winner; (A) = Advances to a further round.
Only applicable when the season is not finished:
(Q) = Qualified to the phase of tournament indicated; (TQ) = Qualified to tournament, but not yet to the particular phase indicated; (RQ) = Qualified to the relegation tournament indicated; (DQ) = Disqualified from tournament.

Results by round

Round12345678910111213141516171819202122232425262728293031323334
GroundAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAAHAHAHAHAHAHA
ResultDDDWWWWWWLWWWWDWWWWWDDWWWLWWDWWWDL
Position7784333211111111111111111111111111

Source: ForaDeJogo
A = Away; H = Home; W = Win; D = Draw; L = Loss

Matches

Taça de Portugal

UEFA Cup Winners' Cup

First round

Second round

Quarter-finals

Semi-finals

Friendlies

[26]

Player statistics

The squad for the season consisted of the players listed in the tables below, as well as staff member Toni(manager)[27][17]

Note 1: Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

Note 2: Players with squad numbers marked ‡ joined the club during the 1992-93 season via transfer, with more details in the following section.

No. Pos Nat Player TotalPrimeira DivisãoTaça de PortugalCup Winners' CupSupertaça
AppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
1 GK Portugal Silvino 4-3103-30000
1 GK Portugal Neno 41-3533-24008-100-1
2 DF Portugal António Veloso 300210205020
2 DF Portugal Abel Xavier 332251008100
2 DF Portugal Abel Silva 170120300020
3‡ DF Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia Jovo Simanić 0000000000
4 DF Portugal Nuno Afonso 1010000000
4 DF Portugal Hélder 432322306020
4 DF Brazil William 13181005000
5 DF Brazil Carlos Mozer 413293307020
5 MF Sweden Stefan Schwarz 312231206100
6 MF Russia Vasili Kulkov 264212203200
7 MF Portugal Vítor Paneira 458326318120
8 MF Portugal João Pinto 46183415218220
9 FW Portugal Rui Águas 349256314121
9 FW Russia Sergei Yuran 296204215120
10 MF Portugal Rui Costa 4710345318420
11 MF Brazil Isaías 37162613118220
11‡ FW Brazil Aílton Delfino 33142811332000
11 FW Portugal César Brito 231151105020
12‡ GK Portugal Paulo Santos 1-11-1000000
16 MF Russia Aleksandr Mostovoi 1000000010
17 DF Portugal Pedro Henriques 1010000000
18 FW Portugal Hernâni Neves 5010102010
22 DF Portugal Daniel Kenedy 180140202000

Transfers

[1]

In

Entry date Position Player From club
July 1993 GK Paulo Santos Olivais e Moscavide
July 1993 CB Jovo Simanić VfB Stuttgart
August 1993 ST Aílton Delfino Atlético Mineiro

Out

Exit date Position Player To club
July 1993 CB Samuel Quina Vitória de Guimarães
July 1993 LW Paulo Futre Marseille
July 1993 DM Paulo Sousa Sporting CP
July 1993 LW António Pacheco
July 1993 RB José Carlos Estrela da Amadora
July 1993 LB Fernando Mendes

Out by loan

Exit date Position Player To club Return date
July 1993 GK Pedro Roma Gil Vicente 30 June 1994
July 1993 CB Paulo Madeira Marítimo 30 June 1994
December 1993 AM Aleksandr Mostovoi Caen 30 June 1994

References

  1. 1 2 "Squad 1993/94". foradejogo.net.
  2. ↑ Tovar 2012, p. 523.
  3. ↑ Tovar 2012, p. 738.
  4. ↑ "Verão Quente... de 1993!" [Hot Summer...of 1993]. Se isto fosse verdade (in Portuguese). 29 February 2008. Retrieved 3 September 2015.
  5. ↑ "Verão quente de 93: Raptos, esconderijos e muito suspense" [Hot Summer of 1993: Kidnappings, hideouts and a lot of suspense]. Planeta Benfica (in Portuguese). 22 June 2013. Retrieved 3 September 2015.
  6. 1 2 3 Tovar 2012, p. 524.
  7. ↑ Tovar 2012, p. 530.
  8. ↑ Tovar 2012, p. 520.
  9. ↑ Tovar 2012, p. 525.
  10. ↑ Tovar 2012, p. 526.
  11. 1 2 Tovar 2012, p. 529.
  12. 1 2 Tovar 2012, p. 527.
  13. ↑ "Recorde o 4-4 entre Benfica e Bayer Leverkusen" [Remember the 4-4 between Benfica and Bayer Leverkusen]. Publico.pt (in Portuguese). 20 December 2012. Retrieved 3 September 2015.
  14. ↑ "Benfica-2 Parma-1 de 1994" [Benfica 2-1 Parma in 1994]. Memória Gloriosa (in Portuguese). 22 October 2007. Retrieved 3 September 2015.
  15. ↑ Tovar 2012, p. 528.
  16. ↑ "Época 1993/94" [1993/94 Season]. Glória Vermelha (in Portuguese). Retrieved 3 September 2015.
  17. 1 2 3 4 5 Tovar 2012, p. 531.
  18. ↑ "Benfica - GKS Katowice".
  19. ↑ "GKS Katowice - Benfica".
  20. ↑ "Benfica - CKSA Sofia".
  21. ↑ "CSKA Benfica".
  22. ↑ "SL Benfica vs Bayer Leverkusen". Worldfootball.net. Retrieved 23 March 2012.
  23. ↑ "Bayer Leverkusen vs SL Benfica". Worldfootball.net. Retrieved 23 March 2012.
  24. ↑ "SL Benfica vs Parma AC". Worldfootball.net. Retrieved 21 March 2012.
  25. ↑ "Parma AC vs SL Benfica". Worldfootball.net. Retrieved 21 March 2012.
  26. ↑ António Manuel Morais; Carlos Perdigão; João Loureiro; José de Oliveira Santos (1994). Benfica: 90 Anos de História (in Portuguese). SOGAPAL. p. 261.
  27. ↑ "Squad 1993-94". worldfootball.net.

Bibliography

  • Tovar, Rui Miguel (2012). Almanaque do Benfica. Portugal: Lua de Papel. ISBN 978-989-23-2087-8.
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