Champions League: Monaco boss Hütter accepts underdogs tag in clash with Benfica

paul myers

Wed, 12 Feb 2025, 6:46 am·2-min read

Monaco boss Adi Hütter is trying to steer the club into the last-16 of the Champions League since 2017.

Monaco head coach Adi Hütter claimed Wednesday night's opponents Benfica were the slight favourites in the two-leg play-off for a place in the last-16 of the Champions League.

The sides met in November during the group stages of European football's most prestigious competition. The Portuguese giants emerged 3-2 winners.

"In a double-header, Benfica may be favourites because they beat us once in Monaco, but we'll be doing everything we can to reach the next round," said Hütter ahead of the clash at the Stade Louis II.

"It's going to be a big game for us again. However, there are differences between the group stages and the play-offs.

"We want to get a good result before we go back to Lisbon. I went there once when I was in charge of Eintracht Frankfurt, it's a difficult place to get a result because it's a fantastic stadium with a fantastic crowd too."

Monaco's preparation for their assignment went awry at PSG on Friday night in Ligue 1.

After going in all-square at half-time at the Parc des Princes, the hosts came out and scored three times to sweep to a 4-1 victory and maintain their 10-point cushion over second-placed Marseille at the top of the French top flight.

Monaco's goal will be a place in the last-16 for the first time since they surged to the semi-final in 2017 when a squad boasting a teenaged Kylian Mbappé surged to the semi-finals.

(With newswires)