The images from rainy Lisbon, goalkeeper Anatoly Trubin's 98th-minute goal and José Mourinho's new winning run will remain forever.
Benfica defeated Real Madrid (4:2) with a goal from the Ukrainian goalkeeper, achieving the goal difference that allowed them to "squeeze" into the 24 teams that will continue the competition in the last second of the preliminary stage.
The match with the "royal club" will be remembered, and the next round could bring a new clash between the same rivals.
The draw for the knockout phase of the Champions League will take place tomorrow (Friday) at noon, and the table layout is such that the play-offs could feature a rematch of the Benfica-Real clash as early as February.
The draw system is the same as last season, so it is clear that the teams from the Top 8 will await their rivals in the round of 16, while those ranked 9th to 24th will have an additional play-off round.
It is also known that the seeded teams in the draw will be the teams ranked 9th to 16th, but also that each team will have two potential rivals in the first round of the knockout phase. For the teams ranked 9th and 10th, the possible opponents are those ranked 23rd and 24th in the table, for the teams ranked 11th and 12th, it is 21st and 22nd, and so on...
All of this means that Real Madrid (9) and Inter (10) will play against Boda/Glimt (23) or Benfica (24).
Then Paris Saint-Germain (11) and Newcastle (12) will face Monaco (21) or Qarabag (22), so our Marko Janković will play against the European champions or at St. James' Park.
Vasilije Adžić and Juventus (13) and Atletico Madrid (14) have Club Brugge (19) and Galatasaray (20) as potential rivals, while Nikola Krstović's Atalanta (15) and Bayer Leverkusen (16) will play against Borussia Dortmund (17) or Olympiacos (18).
After that draw, the potential pairings for the round of 16 will be revealed, as well as how all the clubs' paths to the grand final in Budapest could look. What is clear is that the two best teams in the league stage, Arsenal and Bayern, are going to different sides of the bracket and cannot meet before the trophy match.
The new draw, which will also include teams from the Top 8, will take place once the play-off matches are completed, but it is already certain that it could bring some spectacular matches.
Paris Saint-Germain could go to Barcelona or Chelsea, Real or Inter to Manchester City, Juventus or Atletico to Liverpool...
Bonus video:
