Sports
How to Watch on TV, Stream Champions League Game
Real Madrid will look to solidify their bye to the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 when they travel to Portugal to take on
Benfica Lisbon on Wednesday.
Los Blancos currently sit in third place in the UCL league phase standings with five wins and two losses for 15 points. A win would guarantee a finish in the top-eight, while a draw should also be enough to book their ticket to the last 16.
Madrid routed Monaco 6-1 last week, with Kylian Mbappé scoring twice against his former club.
The Galacticos beat Villarreal 2-0 in La Liga action over the weekend, but still sit one point behind leaders
FC Barcelona in the league table.
Benfica, meanwhile, have had a disappointing Champions League campaign so far, winning just two games and losing five. Sitting in 29th place with six points, the Jose Mourinho’s side will need a win if they want any chance of making the knockout playoffs. They lost 2-0 to Juventus on Matchday 7.
The Eagles are in third place in the Primeira Liga standings, 10 points adrift of leaders FC Porto. They’re fresh off a 4-0 win over CF Estrela da Amadora over the weekend.
Real Madrid and Benfica have faced each other on three previous occasions in the Champions League, with the Spaniards claiming two wins. Their last meeting dates all the way back tot he 1964-65 season, when Benfica advanced past Madrid with a 6-3 aggregate win in the quarterfinals.
Where to Watch Real Madrid vs Benfica
- When: Wednesday, January 28 – 3PM ET / 12PM PT
- Where: Estadio Da Luz, Lisbon
- Where to watch in the United States: CBS Sports, Paramount+
Real Madrid vs Benfica Betting Odds
- Real Madrid to win: -140
- Draw: +310
- Benfica to win: +350
- Both teams to score (Yes/No): -192 / +150
- Over/Under 3.5 goals: +130 / -160
- Kylian Mbappé first goalscorer: +260
- Vinicius Jr anytime goalscorer: +140
- Jude Bellingham anytime goalscorer: +230
- Kylian Mbappé to score 2 or more goals: +300
Odds courtesy of FanDuel.
Benfica Team News and Predicted Lineup
Benfica predicted lineup (4-2-3-1): Anatoliy Trubin (GK) – Amar Dedic, Tomas Araujo, Nicolas Otamendi, Samuel Dahl – Leandro Barreiro, Fredrik Aursnes – Andreas Schjelderup, Georgiy Sudakov, Gianluca Prestianni – Vangelis Pavlidis.
Real Madrid Team News and Predicted Lineup
Alvaro Arbeloa still has to deal with injuries to key players, but he has a red-hot Mbappé in his pocket for the trip to Portugal.
The Frenchman has scored five goals over his last three games, and should start alongside Vinicius Jr and Franco Mastantuono on Wednesday.
Aurelien Tchouameni should be back amongst the starters after serving a suspension in the win over Villarreal, and could be joined by Arda Guler and Eduardo Camavinga.
On defense, left-back Alvaro Carreras is set to face his former club for the first time since moving from Lisbon to Madrid in the summer transfer window.
Real Madrid predicted lineup (4-3-3): Thibaut Courtois (GK) – Federico Valverde, Raul Asencio, Dean Huijsen, Alvaro Carreras – Arda Guler, Eduardo Camavinga, Jude Bellingham – Franco Mastantuono, Kylian Mbappé, Vinicius Jr.
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Sports
West Ham Ready Move For Josh Mulligan
West Ham United’s relegation from the Premier League is set to trigger several player exits as the Hammers need to balance the books heading into next season.
It is estimated sales between £100m-£150m will be required for the club to clear their debts. Mateus Fernandes is one player attracting major interest from several Premier League sides.
Arsenal, Manchester United and Liverpool have all been linked with the player who has a valuation of £80m.
The Irons need to clarify which players they will allow to leave the club before they can begin to make additions as they look to get out of the Championship at the first time of asking.
And enquiries on some new signings are already being made.
West Ham make enquiry for Josh Mulligan
According to GIVEMESPORT senior football correspondent Ben Jacobs, the Hammers have made an initial enquiry about signing Josh Mulligan from Scottish Premiership side Hibernian.
The 23-year-old joined Hibs last summer and is under contract with the Edinburgh club until 2029.
His season was disrupted by a serious ankle injury back in January which required surgery. He returned for the final two games of the campaign against Rangers and Motherwell.
In recent days, Hibs head coach David Gray described the player as ‘excellent’ and ‘hard-working’ as he praised the midfielder for the manner in which he battled back from his injury.
While West Ham have made an enquiry, there is no formal offer as they continue to assess who they will need to sell this summer.
Gray has been linked with English clubs before, with both Nottingham Forest and Leeds United credited with an interest ahead of the January window.
However, with Mulligan picking up his injury in mid-January, any hopes of a Premier League move were dashed.
Who is West Ham target Josh Mulligan?
Mulligan came through the academy at Scottish club Dundee, and had loan spells at Cove Rangers and Peterhead before becoming a first-team regular.
He made a total of 122 appearances for Dundee, scoring six goals and providing 10 assists. He earned a move to Hibs last summer and played 33 times for the club, with three goals and five assists.
He joined Hibs on a free transfer when his contract at Dundee expired. However, the Easter Road club did pay a compensation package to the Dark Blues as the player came through their academy.
That agreement, according to The Courier, contains a sell-on clause. That could result in Hibs putting a slightly bigger price tag on Mulligan if West Ham decide to proceed with a formal bid.
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Newcastle ‘Genuine Contenders’ to Sign James Trafford
Newcastle United are ‘genuine contenders’ to sign a player from Manchester City this summer, according to TEAMtalk.
The Magpies will be out to improve on last season’s bottom-half Premier League finish. It was a disappointing campaign for the club and manager Eddie Howe.
Newcastle have qualified for the Champions League twice since Howe’s arrival as manager but there will be no European football for the club next term as they look to rebuild.
Some transfer business has already taken place at St James’ Park with Anthony Gordon leaving the north east outfit and joining Barcelona for around £70m.
That fee will boost Newcastle’s funds for incoming signings this summer and one player they have their eye on his City goalkeeper James Trafford.
James Trafford keen on Newcastle United switch
The goalkeeper joined City from Burnley last summer but his ambitions of being number one at the club were dashed when Pep Guardiola made a late summer swoop for Gianluigi Donnarumma.
The ex-AC Milan stopper was signed for just £26m after surprisingly leaving Paris Saint-Germain.
According to TEAMtalk, Trafford views a move to Newcastle positively and is attracted to the project at the club.
He is also attracted to the prospect of becoming a key player for the Magpies, which would also help him as he eyes the number one spot with England.
Newcastle have competition from several Premier League rivals for Trafford with Aston Villa previously linked, but only if Emi Martinez moves on.
Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur have also been credited with an interest.
Newcastle need to upgrade goalkeeping department
Newcastle goalkeeper Nick Pope turned 34 in April and is approaching the final years of his career.
Trafford is still only 23 and has his best years ahead of him. He is unlikely to usurp Donnarumma for the number one spot at City and is keen to move somewhere he can play regularly.
He is on wages of £100,000-a-week while City are ready to demand £40m to sell him this summer. The former Burnley player made the move to the Etihad Stadium for around £30m about 12 months ago.
Newcastle did have an offer accepted by Burnley for Trafford but City had a matching rights clause in the player’s contract after initially selling him to Burnley.
With the Magpies’ offer accepted, the matching rights agreement allowed City to swoop. They will now want to make a profit on the player before going into the market for a new number two.
The Magpies are in the market for a new goalkeeper after opting against a permanent move for Aaron Ramsdale, who will return to Southampton following the end of his season-long loan at St James’ Park.
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Tottenham in Talks to Sign Manchester United’s Marcus Rashford
Tottenham have reportedly opened talks about signing a Manchester United star ahead of the summer transfer window.
Spurs are certainly not messing around in the summer market as they have all already agreed to bring in two new additions.
GIVEMESPORT understands that Andy Robertson and Marcos Senesi are both set to join Tottenham after they secured their Premier League status at the end of the season.
Robertson and Senesi are set to leave Liverpool and Bournemouth, respectively, following the expiration of their contracts, and Tottenham have acted fast to secure their signatures.
Tottenham will need further reinforcements after the defensive duo, and it appears they are also in the market to sign a new attacker.
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Huge news for Tottenham.
Tottenham Open Attacker Transfer Talks
According to reports in Spain, Tottenham are among the sides who have opened talks ahead of a potential deal to sign Manchester United forward Marcus Rashford in the summer transfer window.
Rashford spent the 2025/2026 season on loan at La Liga side Barcelona, who have the option to turn the loan deal permanent.
After securing the signing of Anthony Gordon from Newcastle, it remains to be seen whether Barcelona will also look to bring Rashford back permanently.
The report claims that Rashford has no interest in joining Tottenham, with three Premier League sides keen on securing his signature.
If Barcelona opt against signing Rashford permanently, it will be interesting to see if his stance on joining Tottenham changes.
Rashford Might Need to Reduce Wages
If Rashford wants to find a new club in the summer transfer window on a permanent basis, he might need to consider dropping his wage demands. The English forward reportedly earns in the region of £325,000 a week, but his performances have certainly not warranted that salary over the last few years.
It feels unlikely that a club like Tottenham would be willing to pay him this much, while other Premier League clubs could struggle to justify it too.
There’s no doubt Rashford would be a smart option for Tottenham, but being without European football could harm them in the race to secure his signature.
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