“Very forward and very attack-minded”: The tactics behind Benfica Feminino’s exceptional league form in 2022/23 – scout report

Fans of Portuguese women’s football currently have a lot to celebrate, with the national side sealing a first-ever place at the World Cup finals last week after seeing off Cameroon in a play-off final. However, those who also claim Benfica Feminino as their team of choice will be especially satisfied with life as things stand, with the team sitting top of the Campeonato Nacional Feminino (the Portuguese women’s top flight) and yet to drop a point after 13 games of the season.

Some might say that this level of dominance reflects badly on the overall quality of the league, and there is some truth to that. However, it also shows just how good Benfica have been on the field, with there being plenty of tactical reasons for their strong form as well, and the fact that the Lisbon-based club provided tough tests for both Barcelona Femení and Bayern Munich Frauen in this season’s Champions League group stage shows that they are a side who cannot be taken lightly.

Under Filipa Patão’s stewardship, they have developed a “very forward and very attack-minded” style of play, as Rangers Women manager Malky Thomson stated in September before facing them in a Champions League qualifier, and this tactical analysis will take a closer look at why opponents have found them so hard to defeat. The scout report will break down their attacking play, explain why their rotations are so important to their overall success and show why their defensive tactics have helped them to remain strong at the back and only concede three times in the league to date.

Offensive threat

However, before looking at those defensive aspects of their game, it would be prudent to begin the analysis by focusing on just why Benfica Feminino have been such a force when they have possession, with them finding the net 61 times so far (an average of 4.67 per game).

A lot of what has gone well for them this season has come down to their ability to use their opponents’ tactics against them, with many sides who have faced them in the league opting to allow Benfica to have the ball (leading to them averaging 67.05% possession per game this season) and getting numbers behind the ball in a mid to low block.

However, the danger of playing that way is that it gives Benfica no end of opportunities to pick out passes around the field and control the flow of the game, putting their opponents under constant pressure and targeting the areas where they see weak points that can be exploited. In this case, Torreense Feminino’s defensive line has moved too far forward and left a significant amount of space open behind them, which has allowed Spanish midfielder Pauleta to give Portugal forward Kika Nazareth a chance to run towards the goal.