Club World Cup Scouting Report: Can Angel Di Maria shine on the world's stage with yet another impact performance?

The Portuguese side have long been a Europea heavyweight, but can they keep up with the elites this summer?

Benfica aren't the most exciting European club, but in Portugal, they're the gold standard. They are 38-time Primeira Liga champions, two-time European Cup (now the Champions League) winners and 26-time Taca De Portugal winners - truly a club with intentions to lift trophies.

At the FIFA Club World Cup this summer, their ambitions will be exactly that.

Based in Lisbon, the club will look to have a statement performance - building on their brilliant regular season form in the Liga Portugal this campaign. Led by Argentine veterans Nicolas Otamendi and Angel Di Maria, they'll rely on experience from the 2022 FIFA World Cup Champions to guide them.

Bruno Lage's roster also features U.S. youth international Joshua Wynder. The 19-year-old has been a standout performer with their second team in 2025, but could break out with the senior team ahead of the tournament.

The 2025 FIFA Club World Cup will be played in 12 stadiums in 11 U.S. cities, from the opener on June 14 until the final on July 13. In the U.S., fans can stream or watch matches on DAZN or TNT. Leading up to kickoff, GOAL will provide scouting reports on each of the 32 participating teams in the expanded field.

Next up is Benfica, with a look at key players to watch, and expectations for the Portuguese club ahead of this summer's tournament.

Getty Images Sport
The Basics
DOMESTIC LEAGUE: Liga Portugal
CLUB WORLD CUP HISTORY: This is their first appearance
GROUP: C (Auckland City, Bayern Munich, Benfica, Boca Juniors)
OPENING MATCH: Boca Juniors - June 16, 6 pm. ET, Miami

How they got here
The Portuguese giants qualified by being the seventh-ranked eligible team in UEFA's four-year ranking. Having accumulated 52 coefficient points in a rolling four-year period, Benfica was handed one of UEFA’s nine available slots.
AFP
The player to watch
Angel Di Maria has long been a phenom in world soccer. The Argentine winger has a wand of a left foot that has seemingly never grown tired, even at age 37. The winger has recorded more than 10 goal-contributions for the Portugues giants this season, and throughout his entire career, has also been known to be a set-piece specialist.
Now retired internationally from La Albiceleste, Di Maria recorded 145 appearances for his country - most recently winning Copa America 2024, which followed his World Cup triumph. He's also held stints with all of Real Madrid, PSG and Juventus - a forward who competed at the highest levels across Europe.
This summer, he'll look to give the world's stage one last show as his career winds down. It's uncertain how much longer he will play, but in FIFA competitions, this could be it for one of the brightest attackers of this generation.

ENJOYED THIS STORY?

Add GOAL.com as a preferred source on Google to see more of our reporting

Add as preferred source on Google

AFP
Realistic expectation
Benfica are currently locked into a neck-and-neck title race with Sporting Lisbon for the regular season title. Already with one trophy under their belt after lifting the Taca da Liga in January, they're also in contention in the Taca De Portugal - with a semifinal clash against fourth-tier cinderella story Tirsense, as they look to claim their first since 2017.
Defeated by Barcelona in the Round of 16 in this years UEFA Champions League, they impressed during the Group Stage, pulling out results against Atletico Madrid, Monaco and Juventus. They showed they have what it takes to compete against some of Europe's finest throughout their run.
This summer, they should compete with Bayern for the top spot in the group, while advancing to the knockout stages at minimum. Whether or not they make a run in the knockouts will depend on the draw, but Benfica are no pushover - and should not be treated as such.

The Basics

How they got here

The player to watch

ENJOYED THIS STORY?

Realistic expectation