2006–07 S.L. Benfica season
Benfica 2006–07 football season / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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The 2006–07 European football season was the 103rd season of Sport Lisboa e Benfica's existence and the club's 73rd consecutive season in the top flight of Portuguese football. The season ran from 1 July 2006 to 30 June 2007; Benfica competed domestically in the Primeira Liga and the Taça de Portugal. The club also participated in the UEFA Champions League as a result of finishing third in the Primeira Liga in the previous season.
2006–07 season | |||
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President | Luís Filipe Vieira | ||
Head coach | Fernando Santos | ||
Stadium | Estádio da Luz | ||
Primeira Liga | 3rd | ||
Taça de Portugal | Sixth round | ||
UEFA Champions League | Group stage | ||
UEFA Cup | Quarter-finals | ||
Top goalscorer | League: Simão (11) All: Simão (16) | ||
Highest home attendance | 62,756 v Porto[1] (1 April 2007) | ||
Lowest home attendance | 22,227 v União de Leiria (21 January 2007) | ||
Average home league attendance | 33,323[2] | ||
Biggest win | Benfica 5–0 Oliveira do Bairro (6 January 2007) | ||
Biggest defeat | Celtic 3–0 Benfica (17 October 2006) | ||
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After manager Ronald Koeman's departure, Benfica immediately searched for a replacement. Media speculated the club would sign Sven-Göran Eriksson and later Carlos Queiroz, but Benfica signed the former Porto and Sporting CP manager Fernando Santos. Santos was the first manager since Fernando Riera to manage all of Portugal's Big Three clubs. In the transfer market, Benfica brought back Rui Costa and recruited other notable players including Katsouranis and David Luiz. Fabrizio Miccoli had his loan renewed for a second year, while Geovanni, Manuel Fernandes and Ricardo Rocha left the club during the season.
Because of their league finish, Benfica had to pass Austria Wien to enter the group stage of the season's Champions League. Domestically, Benfica's season started erratically, losing 11 points from three losses and a draw before December. In Europe, the situation was similar; Benfica never recovered a five-point deficit to Celtic by day three, ending with seven points and demotion to the UEFA Cup. From December until April, Benfica regained lost ground in the Primeira Liga, climbing to second place—a point away from Porto, which was also advancing until the quarter-finals of UEFA Cup
In April, Benfica had the opportunity to reach the league's top place if they won the Clássico with Porto; however, they only managed a 1–1 draw. It was the first of five winless games that caused them to drop to third place and be eliminated from Europe by Espanyol. Despite an improvement in form, Benfica wasted a chance to retake second place after another home draw against arch-rival club Sporting. Benfica ended the season in third place, with two fewer points than Porto, ensuring a place in the Champions League.