Benfica v Real Madrid, Monaco v PSG, and more: Champions League – live

2026-02-17 - 18:43

⚽ Champions League updates from the first-leg matches ⚽ Live scores | Follow us over on Bluesky | And email Scott The big game of the evening is undoubtedly Benfica v Real Madrid. The absurd Keith Houchen-channeling antics of Anatoliy Trubin have seen to that ... ... though it’s low-level astonishing that these two famous old clubs, steeped in golden-age European Cup history having won the first seven stagings between them, had only ever met twice before last month’s match. Benfica won the 1962 final 5-3, then put Real out 6-3 on aggregate (5-1, 1-2) in the 1964-65 quarters. Eusébio helped himself to five goals over those three matches. All totted up, Benfica have won three and lost one, to the aggregate tune of 15-8. Not sure Real Madrid have had their trousers more frequently handed to them, freshly pressed and laundered, by any other club on the European scene. It’s not quite Dundee United’s genuinely side-splitting competitive hex on Barcelona (P4 W4) but it’s still something. Continue reading...