The 2009–10 European football season was the 106th season of Sport Lisboa e Benfica's existence and the club's 76th consecutive season in the top flight of Portuguese football. The season ran from 1 July 2009 to 30 June 2010; Benfica competed domestically in the Primeira Liga, Taça de Portugal and Taça da Liga. The club also participated in the UEFA Europa League after qualifying from the competition's play-off round, which they had to play as a result of finishing third in the previous season.
On 16 June 2009, Jesus replaced Quique Sánchez Flores at the helm of Benfica. Jesus implemented a 4–1–3–2 formation, in which a winger, Ramires, provided cover and assistance to the defensive midfielder, Javi García, and other winger, Ángel Di María, conducted the counterattacks. Pablo Aimar, as an attacking midfielder, distributed play and Javier Saviola created space between lines for Óscar Cardozo, Aimar and Di María.
This fast-paced football proved to be successful and during his first year Jesus led Benfica to the first division title with only 2 loses, also reaching the quarter-finals in the Europa League, losing to Liverpool on a 3–5 aggregate score (this would be the last match Benfica would lose in a run that lasted 27 games).
Benfica won their 32nd Primeira Liga and their second League Cup. They saw the definite breakthroughs of Ángel Di María, David Luiz and Fábio Coentrão, while Óscar Cardozo had his best season yet, scoring 26 league goals. The team's only disappointments of the season were a 4–1 loss to Liverpool at Anfield in the Europa League quarter-finals second leg, where Fernando Torres hit two second-half goals to knock Benfica out of Europe, and an early exit at the Taça de Portugal.
Season summary After a disappointing season in which Benfica failed to qualify for the Champions League, the club appointed Jorge Jesus as head coach. To strengthen the squad, Benfica signed Javi García and Javier Saviola from Real Madrid, Ramires from Cruzeiro, and César Peixoto from Braga. Fábio Coentrão also returned from loan, while Kostas Katsouranis, Reyes, and David Suazo left the club.
The pre-season began with a 2–2 draw against Sion in Switzerland, followed by victories over Shakhtar Donetsk, Athletic Bilbao, and Olhanense, a defeat to Atlético Madrid, four consecutive wins against Sunderland, Ajax, Portsmouth and Vitória de Guimarães, and a 1–1 draw with Milan in the Eusébio Cup.
The official season opened on 16 August with a 1–1 home draw against Marítimo, followed by a 1–0 away victory over Vitória de Guimarães and an 8–1 home win against Vitória de Setúbal. Later that month, Benfica defeated Vorskla Poltava 5–2 on aggregate in the 2009–10 UEFA Europa League play-off round.
In September Benfica won all four of its matches: 4–0 away at Belenenses, 2–1 away at Leiria, 5–0 at home against Leixões, and 2–0 at home against BATE Borisov in their opening Europa League group stage match. October began with a 1–0 away loss to AEK Athens, but the team responded with victories over Paços de Ferreira, Monsanto in the Taça de Portugal, and a 5–0 home win against Everton in the Europa League. The month ended with a 2–0 away defeat to Braga, leaving Benfica three points behind them in the league table.
Benfica began November with a 2–0 away win over Everton in the Europa League, followed by a league victory against Naval 1º de Maio. The team was then eliminated at home by Vitória de Guimarães in the fourth round of the Taça de Portugal. The month concluded with a 0–0 draw against Sporting at the Estádio José Alvalade. In December, Benfica defeated BATE Borisov and Académica, drew 2–2 away with Olhanense, and won 2–1 against AEK Athens before hosting Porto. In a tightly contested match, a 23rd-minute goal from Javier Saviola secured a 1–0 victory, allowing Benfica to end the year level on points with Braga.
The new year began with a 1–0 win over Nacional in the Taça da Liga, followed by league victories against Rio Ave away, Marítimo away, and Vitória de Guimarães at home. A draw against Guimarães and a win over Rio Ave in the Taça da Liga ensured Benfica advanced to the semi-finals, finishing January as joint league leaders.
In February, Benfica recorded league wins over Leiria, Belenenses and Leixões, drew away to Vitória de Setúbal, eliminated Sporting with a 4–1 away victory in the Taça da Liga semi-finals, and defeated Hertha BSC 5–1 on aggregate in the Europa League round of 32. March began with league wins over Paços de Ferreira and Nacional, followed by three decisive fixtures. Benfica eliminated Marseille 3–2 on aggregate in the Europa League round of 16, after a 1–1 home draw and a 2–1 away win secured in extra time. The team then defeated Porto 3–0 in the Taça da Liga final at the Estádio Algarve, before hosting Braga in a decisive league match at the Estádio da Luz, which Benfica won 1–0. The month ended with Benfica advancing in the Europa League, winning the Taça da Liga, and extending their lead at the top of the league to six points.
April began with a UEFA Europa League quarter-final tie against Liverpool, where Benfica won the first leg 2–1 at home but lost 4–1 at Anfield, resulting in elimination from the competition. The team then secured league victories over Naval 1º de Maio, Sporting, Académica and Olhanense, moving closer to the league title. On 2 May, Benfica visited Estádio do Dragão to face Porto, knowing that a win would secure the championship. However, the match ended in a 3–1 defeat, delaying their celebrations. One week later, Benfica clinched their 32nd league title with a victory over Rio Ave.
Competitions
Pre-season friendlies
Regular season friendlies
Primeira Liga
League table
Results by round
Matches
Taça de Portugal
Taça da Liga
Group stage
Semi-finals
Final
UEFA Europa League
Play-off round
Group stage
Knockout phase
Round of 32
Round of 16
Quarter-finals
Overall record Competition First match Last match RecordGWDLGFGAGDWin %Source Primeira Liga 16 August 2009 9 May 2010 Taça de Portugal 17 October 2009 22 November 2009 Taça da Liga 3 January 2010 21 March 2010 UEFA Europa League 20 August 2009 8 April 2010 Total
Player statistics
! colspan="15" style="background:#dcdcdc; text-align:center;"| Goalkeepers
! colspan="15" style="background:#dcdcdc; text-align:center;"| Defenders
! colspan="15" style="background:#dcdcdc; text-align:center;"| Midfielders
! colspan="15" style="background:#dcdcdc; text-align:center;"| Strikers
Transfers In Summer
No. Pos. Name Moving From Type of Transfer Contract Ends Transfer fee Notes Source 6 MF Javi García Real Madrid Transfer 2014 €7M N/A 8 MF Ramires Cruzeiro Transfer 2014 €7.5M N/A 30 FW Javier Saviola Real Madrid Transfer 2012 €5M N/A 2 DF Patric São Caetano Transfer 2013 €1.9M N/A 3 DF José Shaffer Racing Club Transfer 2013 €1.7M N/A 13 GK Júlio César Belenenses Transfer 2014 €0.5M N/A 25 DF César Peixoto Braga Transfer 2012 €0.4M N/A 24 MF Felipe Menezes Goiás Transfer 2014 €1.1M N/A 19 FW Weldon Recife Transfer 2011 €0.2M N/A 11 FW Keirrison Barcelona Loan 2010 Undisclosed N/A 22 DF Luís Filipe Vitória de Guimarães Loan return 2011 Free N/A 18 FW Fábio Coentrão Rio Ave Loan return 2012 Free N/A # DF Leandro Silva Coritiba Transfer 2015 Free N/A # FW Ivan Santos Boavista Loan return 2012 Free N/A # FW Yu Dabao Olivais e Moscavide Loan return 2009 Free N/A # DF Ruben Lima Desportivo das Aves Loan return 2012 Free N/A # MF Miguel Rosa Estoril Loan return 2012 Free N/A # DF László Sepsi Racing Santander Loan return 2012 Free N/A # DF Edcarlos Fluminense Loan return 2013 Free N/A # FW Ariza Makukula Bolton Wanderers Loan return 2013 Free N/A # MF Andrés Díaz Banfield Loan return 2011 Free N/A # DF Marco Zoro Vitória de Setúbal Loan return 2011 Free N/A # DF Rafik Halliche Nacional Loan return 2013 Free N/A # FW Marcel Vissel Kobe Loan Return 2012 Free N/A # FW André Carvalhas Olhanense Loan return 2012 Free N/A # MF Romeu Ribeiro Desportivo das Aves Loan return 2011 Free N/A # FW Freddy Adu Monaco Loan return 2013 Free N/A
Winter
No. Pos. Name Moving From Type of Transfer Contract Ends Transfer fee Notes Source 2 MF Airton Flamengo Transfer 2015 €2.6M N/A 31 FW Alan Kardec Vasco da Gama Transfer 2015 €2.5M N/A 32 FW Éder Luís Atlético Mineiro Transfer 2015 €2M For 50% economic right's
Spend : €32.4M
Out Summer
No. Pos. Name Moving to Type of transfer Transfer fee Source # MF Kostas Katsouranis Panathinaikos Transfer €3.5M # DF Edcarlos Cruz Azul Transfer €1.3M # DF László Sepsi Politehnica Timișoara Transfer €1.3M # MF Romeu Ribeiro Marítimo Transfer Free # MF Andrés Díaz - Contract terminated Free 2 DF Patric Cruzeiro Loan €0.15M 26 MF Hassan Yebda Portsmouth Loan €0.48M # MF Gilles Binya Neuchâtel Xamax Loan Free # DF Rafik Halliche Nacional Loan Free # FW Freddy Adu Belenenses Loan Free # FW Yu Dabao Mafra Loan Free # DF Marco Zoro Vitória Setúbal Loan Free # FW Ishmael Yartey Beira-Mar Loan Free # DF Leandro da Silva Guimarães Loan Free # FW Marcel Santos FC Loan Free # MF Fellipe Bastos Belenenses Loan Free # DF Ruben Lima Vitória Setúbal Loan Free # FW André Carvalhas Fátima Loan Free # FW Ivan Santos Carregado Loan Free # MF Miguel Rosa Carregado Loan Free # FW Ariza Makukula Kayserispor Loan Free # DF Abel Pereira Mafra Loan Free # FW Hélio Vaz Mafra Loan Free # FW André Soares Carregado Loan Free # FW José Coelho Paços de Ferreira Loan Free # MF David Simão Fátima Loan Free # DF João Pereira Fátima Loan Free # FW José Antonio Reyes Atlético Madrid Loan return - # FW David Suazo Internazionale Loan return -
Winter
No. Pos. Name Moving to Type of transfer Transfer fee Source # FW Yu Dabao Tianjin Teda Transfer Free # GK Moretto Brasiliense Contract terminated Free 11 FW Keirrison Barcelona Loan return Free # MF Fellipe Bastos Servette Loan Free 2 DF Patric Avaí Loan €0.1M 3 DF José Shaffer Banfield Loan Free # FW Urreta Peñarol Loan Free # FW Freddy Adu Aris Loan Free # FW Javier Balboa Cartagena Loan Free # FW Nélson Oliveira Rio Ave Loan Free # DF Abel Pereira Tondela Loan Free # FW Ivan Santos Atlético CP Loan Free # FW Hélio Vaz Tondela Loan Free # FW André Soares Atlético CP Loan Free
Transfer income: €6.83M
Overall transfer activity
Spending Summer: €25,300,000 Winter: €7,100,000 Total: €32,400,000
Income Summer: €6,730,000 Winter: €100,000 Total: €6,830,000
Expenditure Summer: €18,570,000 Winter: €7,000,000 Total: €25,570,000
References
Filmography