On September 16, Zenit St. Petersburg played its first match in the group stage of the Champions League 2014-2015 season. Our club rivals were the Benfica players. The match took place in Portugal.
The Russian team started the meeting with the formidable Portuguese opponent very confidently. Already in the first minutes, the Hulk served dangerously into the penalty area. His pass almost ended with a goal against Benfica. This was the first warning to the Portuguese defense. After a few more minutes, Zenit still scored. Hulk on the 5th minute received a smart pass from Shatov and sent the ball into the net of Arthur's goal. The Russian team took the lead 1 - 0. After the conceded goal, the Benfica players tried to intensify their actions in the attack, but the St. Petersburg footballers did not allow their opponents to do anything.
In the middle of the first half, two more important events took place. For a foul of last resort against Dani, the Portuguese goalkeeper was sent off, and on the 22nd minute, after a corner kick, Witsel secured Zenit's advantage. The score now stands at 2 - 0. With this result, the teams took a break.
In the second half, the players of the Russian club had several more chances. However, the implementation failed. Hulk hit the post after hitting from an acute angle, Rondon shot past the gate, going to a rendezvous with the goalkeeper. The Benfica players did not have bright one hundred percent scoring chances. It is possible to note only a dangerous blow to the head of Luizao after the standard. Spas Lodygin.
The match ended with a confident victory of Zenit with a score of 2 - 0. The players of the Russian team showed good organization of the game and were able to confirm their class.
