Benfica kick off Portuguese participation in the 2015/16 Champions League group stage tomorrow as they host little known Astana in Lisbon.
PortuGOAL reached out to Manuel Veth, the Editor-in-Chief of the fascinating Futbolgrad, a football website that covers all the post-Soviet states.
Here is his detailed description of what the Portuguese champions can expect from the team that had to travel over 6200 kilometres from Kazakhstan to reach the Estádio da Luz.
1. How did Astana get here? Give us a quick guide to Astana’s path to the group stage of the Champions League.
As Kazakhstan’s champion Astana had a long road to the group stage of the UEFA Champions League, as the club started their campaign in the 2nd Qualification round where they eliminated Slovenia’s NK Maribor on an aggregate score of 3-2 (3-1, and 0-1). The 3rd qualification round saw Astana play Finnish champion HJK Helsinki, and after a 4-3 home win Astana were able to grind out a 0-0 draw in Helsinki that saw the club through to the play-offs.
This was already a remarkable achievement as that guaranteed the club a berth in the Europa League group stage. Yet Astana wanted more, and Kazakhstan’s dream of Champions League football was fulfilled when Astana’s star Nemanja Maksimović (pictured above) tied the score in Cyprus against APOEL to make it 1-1 in the 84 minute (Astana had won their home match 1-0).
2. Current form. How have Astana looked form-wise in recent weeks?
The Kazakhstan Premier League runs on the old Soviet Vysshaia Liga calendar, and begins in March and ends in November. Kazakhstan’s Premier League is highly competitive as several clubs receive state funding, with Astana, Aktobe, and Kairat being the biggest spenders. Astana finished the regular season only one point behind top-of-the-league Kairat, and second placed Aktobe. The league is split after 22 games into a relegation and championship round, and after two matches Astana have overtaken both Kairat and Aktobe, and currently occupy first place.
3. Ones to watch - Who are Astana's star players?
The above mentioned Nemanja Maksimović is the most prominent player at Astana. The Serb was instrumental in his country’s victory at this year’s U-20 World Cup. Other players to watch include Georgy Zhukov, who was born in Kazakhstan but went through Standard Liege’s football academy, and the Columbian Roger Canas, who along with Zhukov occupies one of two offensive midfield positions at the club. Canas is responsible for the more physical elements in Astana’s game.
4. Strong points/weak points – what must Benfica beware of and what can they exploit?
I think the toughest part for Benfica will be the traveling aspect in the away leg, as the distance from Lisbon to Astana is 6200 km. Astana are very inexperienced at this stage, and when put under pressure the Kazakhs will be prone to mistakes. Astana plays solid simple football, and will be well prepared tactically, hence clubs may have to bring a lot of patience, as Astana will be parking the bus for most games.
5. Formation and playing style – what system do Astana usually play? Would you describe them generically as an attacking or a defensive team?
Astana usually play 4-3-2-1 (also known as the Christmas tree formation) with Maksimović as the holding midfielder. Zhukov and Cana are responsible for the creative aspects of the game, but expect Cana to use his body to protect both Maksimović and Zhukov’s more creative play.
In Kazakhstan Astana are usually the team with the majority of possession, but at the same time 44 goals in 24 games in the league show that the club is more likely to grind out results rather than playing spectacular offensive football. As stated above, Astana will try to play defensive football in the group stage, and often times park the bus.
6. What are the local press saying about the tie? What are the expectations as regards Astana's participation in the Champions League group stage?
The press has been fairly positive about Astana’s progress to the Champions League in what is understood as a huge achievement for Kazakh football. At the same time Astana are not the most followed team in Kazakhstan. In fact the club is a bit of a plastic product as it was only founded in 2009, hence attendance was low in the qualifiers and most Kazakh football fans follow other teams such as Kairat and Shakhtar Karagandy.
7. Mood in the camp – judging by player/coach quotes regarding this game, do you think Astana go into the match in a confident frame of mind?
Management and coaches at the club realise that FC Astana has already achieved the maximum in Europe, hence officials will be very relaxed about playing in the Group Stage. For the club this stage is a learning experience, hence there is little pressure for the people working at the club.
8. What do you think the result of the match will be?
Benfica is a giant of European football and most Astana players are entering new territory by playing in Lisbon. I therefore think that Benfica will easily win the match 3-0.
Our thanks to Manuel Veth for sharing his expertise. For more from Manuel, follow him on Twitter at @homosovieticus.
