Benfica could be without one of their star players for this week’s UEFA Europa League meeting with Rangers as their £30 million-rated full-back Alexander Bah is an injury doubt.
After three months on the sidelines with a foot problem either side of Christmas, the Denmark international was understandably delighted to make his long-awaited return to action a few weeks back.
But the luckless Alexander Bah did not have to wait long for a reoccurrence of those old injury issues. Bah, reportedly valued at around £30 million amid interest from the likes of Arsenal, was absent for Sunday’s clash with bitter rivals FC Porto, and it may be no coincidence that Benfica were on the wrong end of a 5-0 hammering without one of their star performers.
Roger Schmidt’s side cannot afford a repeat of that error-strewn display if they are to avoid defeat against a Rangers side boasting an impressive collection of continental scalps. But, according to A Bola, they are likely to be without Bah again.
At least, for the first leg in Lisbon.
Rangers face Benfica in Lisbon
Bah may be a familiar name to some Rangers supporters. He was, after all, part of the Slavia Prague team who knocked Steven Gerrard’s Gers side out of the Europa League in 2020/21. Abdallah Sima also represented the Czech giants in that round-of-16 clash.
Sima too will be conspicuous by his absence on Thursday. In another world, Rangers’ free-scoring left-winger may have found himself in direct competition with right-back Bah. Sima too is unavailable, however, with his replacement Oscar Cortes also now facing a lengthy spell on the sidelines for Philippe Clement’s side.
Mixed injury news for Gers fans
“Oscar has a serious injury,” Clement said ahead of Saturday’s shock 2-1 home defeat by Motherwell. “He will be out for a longer time.
“It’s a really strange one with the action that he did to have a severe injury like that. We need to look at that in the next couple of days what to do with it, operation or not.
“That’s a blow for him, the team, for all of us because he was doing really well.”
Clement did, however, have some rather more positive news about Sima. The Brighton loanee is ‘on schedule’ to make his return sooner rather than later, and should be back on the grass this week.
