International Champions Cup: All Roads Lead to New Jersey!

Fiorentina vs Benfica

It’s off to New Jersey for the latest installment of the International Champions Cup and one which SBOBET fans may find hard to predict.

On saying that, our International Champions Cup betting odds are emphatically clear.

Yet while the Portuguese champions should be too strong for a side which only finished two places and three points above the relegation zone last season in Serie A, this competition can throw up all sorts of results.

Talking Points

Benfica have a 100 per cent record in the competition so far.

Goals from Raul de Tomas – their recent signing from Real Madrid – Rafa Silva and Haris Seferovic sealed a 3-0 success over Guadalajara in their opening match of the tournament.

Bruno Lage’s men have been excellent in preseason so far with two wins out of two, including an 8-0 victory over Academica.

de Tomas certainly appears to be adapting to his new teammates following his move from La Liga. The Spaniard has three goals in two matches and should again start in attack alongside Seferovic, who has found the net twice in that run.

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International Champions Cup

If Benfica win this one, they will then face Milan on Sunday with a chance of winning the overall tournament. It is certainly a serious warm-up period for Lage and his side who face Sporting Lisbon in the Supertaca a week on Sunday (August 4).

Fiorentina is a step up from Guadalajara, of course, but their opponents in the New Jersey Arena will certainly not provide a fear factor for Benfica.

Their difficulties have been well documented.

They have actually failed to score in six of their last seven matches in all competitions and have had a turbulent time.

Despite the team’s poor end to last season – they finished in 16^th place and were still not mathematically safe from the drop going into the final match of the campaign – hope springs eternal this is the start of a new era.

Last month the club was sold to Italian-American billionaire Rocco Commisso for around 160 million euros. That marked the end of the Della Valle family’s 17 association with the club, while Vincenzo Montella has held onto his position as coach and the influential services of Federico Chiesa have also been retained – for now at least.

Yes, La Viola also won their opening ICC contest managing to see off Guadalajara.

Giovanni Simeone and Riccardo Sottil scored on either side of half-time but the 2-1 victory was far from convincing.

Simeone should return to the starting line-up having come off the bench against Arsenal in the 3-0 defeat that followed, a result Montella felt harsh.

In fairness, the scoreline did flatter Arsenal a little especially as Fiorentina created considerably more chances in the opening half.

But it was a familiar story as the Italians continued their struggles in front of goal as they failed to convert any of their eight attempts on target and then were disjointed in defence.

A bright note was the performance of 20-year-old Riccardo Sottil who showed some neat close control and made a couple of excellent runs.

They now look to bounce back with success in this encounter, closely followed by friendlies against Livorno and Galatasaray before beginning their campaign in earnest in the Coppa Italia – a trophy of which Lazio are the holders.

For now, though, all roads lead to New Jersey.

Can Benfica record their second win in the International Champions Cup? — Haris Seferovic in action for Benfica during their International Champions Cup match against Guadalajara

History

The only previous meeting between Benfica and Fiorentina was a 0-0 draw during the 2015 International Champions Cup.

The teams were unable to break the deadlock and the match went to a penalty shoot-out which Fiorentina edged 5-4 on spot-kicks.

Betting Tip

	Fiorentina vs Benfica	Total Goal 2-3 @ 1.94
	July 25, 08:00 (GMT+8)

Benfica are clear favourites: 1X2 @ 1.83 and First Half 1X2 @ 2.32. That contrasts with Fiorentina 1X2 @ 4.00 and First Half 1X2 with the same odds available.

Asian Handicap Fiorentina +0.50 @ 2.08 is a punt worth taking but Asian Handicap Benfica -0.75 @ 2.08 provides a more realistic one.

Considering the Italians have been fairly goal-shy and failed to convince at the back, you would expect goals and can get odds on over 2.75 goals @ 1.85 and over 3.00 goals @ 2.12.

A low scoring affair is not expected, judging by total goal 0-1 @ 4.20, total goal 2-3 @ 1.94 and total goal 4-6 @ 2.80.

The best Double Chance or Draw bet is Fiorentina or Draw @ 1.88.

Meanwhile, a repeat of their only other meeting, four summers ago – correct score 0-0 – is priced @ 13.50.