Nice are looking to qualify for the Champions League proper for the first time
Benfica finished second in the Primeira Liga last season
Recommended bet: Benfica to win
Nice and Benfica meet in the first leg of their UEFA Champions League third-qualifying round tie at the Allianz Riviera on Wednesday in what will be a huge match for both teams.
After finishing fourth in Ligue 1 last season, Nice are embarking on just their second Champions League campaign, and they will be hoping to fare better than on their previous appearance in the competition in 2017-18, when they lost out in qualifying to Napoli.
The Lisbon Eagles are regulars in the Champions League proper and have reached the knockout stages in three of the previous four seasons, while Bruno Lage's side are also fresh from lifting the Portuguese Super Cup last week.
The latest Nice vs Benfica odds are available on LiveScore Bet.
Team news
Nice could hand debuts to summer signings Isak Jansson, Yehvann Diouf, Kojo Peprah Oppong, Gabin Bernardeau and Juma Bah – the latter is on loan from Manchester City – with this being their first competitive match of the new season.
Summer signings Samuel Dahl, Amar Dedic, Enzo Barrenechea and Richard Rios all featured from the start as Benfica edged past rivals Sporting CP to lift the Portuguese Super Cup and that quartet will all hope to keep their places for this game.
Vangelis Pavlidis scored the only goal of that Super Cup success and he should lead the line once more, but defenders Alexander Bah and Tomas Araujo remain on the treatment table.
The latest Nice vs Benfica odds are available on LiveScore Bet.
The stats
This is just Nice's second appearance in the Champions League, although they did also feature twice in the European Cup, reaching the quarter-finals in both the 1956-57 and 1959-60 seasons.
Franck Haise’s side failed to win a single game in the league phase of the Europa League last season, finishing 35th out of 36 teams.
This will mark the first time Nice have ever faced Portuguese opposition in a competitive match.
Benfica have reached the knockout stages of the Champions League in three of the last four seasons, making it to the quarter-finals in 2022 and 2023.
The Eagles knocked out Ligue 1 opposition en route to the last 16 of the competition last season, seeing off Monaco over two legs having also beaten the same opposition in the league phase.
The latest Nice vs Benfica odds are available on LiveScore Bet.
Prediction
This is perhaps the most glamorous looking tie on paper in the third round of Champions League qualifying, but it is one Benfica are capable of coming through and they could even take an advantage into next week's return leg in Lisbon.
Lage's team have far more European pedigree than Nice, as evidenced by their run to the round of 16 last season, while the French club failed to win a game in the Europa League.
Benfica also have the advantage of having already played a competitive game this season – that Portuguese Super Cup success over Sporting – while they also enjoyed a run to the knockout stages of the inaugural Club World Cup earlier in the summer.
Since Nice last contested a competitive game in mid-May, Benfica have played five times and lost none of those matches over 90 minutes – they were knocked out of the Club World Cup by eventual champions Chelsea after extra-time in the United States.
With more momentum, match sharpness and European pedigree behind them, the Eagles are capable of leaving the Allianz Riviera on Wednesday with a potentially priceless victory.
