Good evening! Thank you very much for joining Sports Mole for tonight's Champions League quarter-final first leg between Bayern Munich and Benfica at the Allianz Arena. There is no doubt that the hosts come into this match as heavy favourites to progress over the two legs, but both teams are in superb form and Benfica will be no pushovers for Pep Guardiola's side here. Before we get into all that, though, let's take a look at the team news...

BAYERN STARTING XI: Neuer; Lahm, Kimmich, Alaba, Bernat; Vidal, Thiago; Costa, Muller, Ribery; Lewandowski

BAYERN SUBS: Ulreich, Martínez, Rafinha, Alonso, Götze, Rode, Coman

BENFICA STARTING XI: Ederson; Almeida, Lindelöf, Jardel, Eliseu; Fejsa, Renato, Pizzi, Gaitán; Jonas, Mitroglou

What can we make of those two sides, then? Well, as far as the hosts are concerned the biggest problem for Pep Guardiola was at the back this evening, as it has been for some time now. Boateng and Badstuber remain sidelined, while Benatia and Martinez have also been deemed not fit enough to feature here, which means that Bayern once again have to name something of a makeshift defence. That includes Alaba playing in the centre, as he has done recently, alongside Kimmich, who is usually a midfielder. Bernat is named on the left and Lahm on the right, although it is anyone's guess what shape Bayern will actually take when the first whistle goes.

In all, Guardiola has made three changes to the side that beat Eintracht Frankfurt at the weekend, with Alonso and Gotze joining Martinez in dropping to the bench. That paves the way for Arturo Vidal to return to the starting XI having been left out of that match, and the same applies to Douglas Costa as he comes in for Gotze. Thiago Alcantara retains his place in the midfield and could play in a deeper role alongside Vidal.

That will allow Costa, Muller and Ribery to provide support for Lewandowski, and all three have the quality to either create or score something out of nothing. Ribery got the only goal of the game against Frankfurt at the weekend, while Muller has been scoring for fun this season, already notching a career-best 19 goals in the Bundesliga. He is once again expected to play in the hole just behind Lewandowski, which makes him a very difficult man to mark.

Lewandowski himself in the main threat, though, with the Poland international enjoying the best season of his career so far. He has scored 44 goals in 47 appearances for club and country this term, including 25 in the Bundesliga - his best scoring season in the league ever. There have been reports linking him with a move to Manchester City when Pep Guardiola departs in the summer, but in that sort of form it will take an awful lot of money to prise him away from the Allianz Arena.

That is what Benfica are up against, then, and the visitors are not even at full strength tonight with Luisao, Nuno Santos and Julio Cesar all sidelined. Lisandro Lopez is deemed fit enough for the squad, but only makes it onto the bench as Rui Vitoria is unchanged from the weekend rout of Braga.

It is a defence that Pep Guardiola claimed may be the meanest in Europe at the moment, but they will certainly be up against it this evening with Lewandowski and co. They are likely to need plenty of help from those in front of them. Gaitan is a particular threat for the visitors, though, and could prove useful on the counter-attack when Benfica have a chance to break.

Fans of English football may remember Kostas Mitroglou, who was something of a flop during his brief stint with Fulham but has found form again in Portugal this season. It is interesting that Rui Vitoria has opted to play two strikers, but Mitroglou may spend a lot of him time dropping into midfield to give them move protection, with Bayern expected to dominate possession. If he does get a chance then he is more than capable of taking it, though, as his 18 league goals this season is testament.

He is still some distance from Benfica's main goal threat, though, with Jonas enjoying a magnificent campaign so far. The 32-year-old Brazilian became the first striker in Europe to reach 30 league goals for the season during his side's 5-1 victory over Braga at the weekend, and he has been in particularly good form since the turn of the year, scoring 18 goals in 16 appearances.

There are goals in the Benfica team, then, but the biggest question for the visitors tonight is whether they can prevent Bayern from scoring too many at the other end. Despite Benfica's recent form, which I will talk about in greater detail later, this is seen as one of the kinder draws that Bayern could have received, and it would be a major shock if they weren't to reach a fifth consecutive semi-final. They may even have one eye on getting the job done and dusted tonight.

They were actually drawn against Portuguese opposition at the same stage last season too, and they were given a scare by Porto when they lost the first leg 3-1 in Portugal. However, they responded to that by winning the return fixture 6-1 to wrap up a 7-4 aggregate triumph in some style, and a similar home result for the Bavarians tonight would make next week's second leg almost redundant. The last round hinted that Bayern are by no means invincible, though.

For an hour of their first leg against Juventus in Turin, Bayern were utterly dominant and made last season's runners-up look distinctly average. However, they threw away their two-goal lead to draw 2-2, and found themselves staring down the barrel of an early exit when they fell two down inside half an hour of the second leg at the Allianz Arena too. They fought back with goals from Lewandowski and Muller in minutes 73 and 91 respectively, though, forcing extra time and eventually going on to win 4-2 on the night and 6-4 on aggregate. It looked like the tie of the round when the draw was made, and it certainly didn't disappoint.

Those six goals saw Bayern become the top scorers in this season's competition, with 25 from their eight outings having notched a joint-high 19 in the group stages. They finished top of Group F with just one blemish on their record - a 2-0 defeat away to Arsenal. There was never any doubt that they would progress as group winners, though, and after their last-16 victory over Juventus they come into this match with just one Champions League defeat in their last nine outings.

They have been unstoppable in front of their own fans in the Champions League recently, winning their last 10 matches at the Allianz Arena, which is already a club record. Even more impressively, they have scored no fewer than 40 goals in that time, finding the back of the net four or more times in six of those 10 outings and conceding only six goals in the process. Their last defeat came all the way back in April 2014, although it was a heavy one as Real Madrid ran out 4-0 winners in the semi-finals.

This season is, of course, the last that Guardiola can win the Champions League with Bayern having agreed a summer move to Manchester City. Should he not win the trophy then it would be seen as something of a failure considering he won it twice with Barcelona and took over at Bayern when they were the reigning champions. They are still very much on course for the treble this season, though, sitting five points clear at the top of the Bundesliga table and also having reached the semi-finals of the DFB-Pokal.

Perhaps the most daunting thing for Benfica heading into tonight's match will be Bayern's home form. They have won 18 of their 19 home games this season, scoring a whopping 63 goals in the process at an average of more than three per game. If you go back to the tail end of last season that run stretches to 20 wins from their last 21 games at the Allianz Arena in all competitions, the exception being a shock 2-1 league defeat to Mainz. Defensively they are also very impressive, boasting the best record in Europe's top five leagues with only 13 goals conceded all season.

Bayern can justifiably lay claim to the title of Europe's best defence, then, but that is a title that Guardiola bestowed upon Benfica in the build-up to this match, even claiming that he didn't make his side favourites for the match. Those comments were no doubt just to kick any complacency out of his side, but there is no doubting that Benfica's recent form has been highly impressive and stacks up against any of the other sides in the quarter-finals.

The Portuguese giants have won each of their last eight matches in all competitions and 19 of their last 20, with the only exception being a 2-1 defeat at the hands of Porto. Indeed, that is their only loss going back 22 matches to when they were beaten by Atletico Madrid in the group stages of this competition - a result that saw the 2014 finalists pip Benfica to top spot in Group C.

In truth, Benfica have not been entirely convincing throughout the Champions League this season. They may have given Atletico a run for their money, even managing to beat them at the Vicente Calderon - a result which Bayern will no doubt be taking notice of heading into this match - but they also dropped points to Galatasaray and Astana during the groups. Fortunately for them, they received a kind draw in the last 16, with Zenit St Petersburg coming out of the hat.

It was a tale of late goals in that last 16 tie, with Benfica winning the first leg 1-0 at home courtesy of a stoppage-time strike from Jonas. The second looked set for extra time after Hulk's goal had given the hosts the lead, but Gaitan struck in the 85th minute to get a crucial away goal before Talisca put the tie well and truly beyond doubt in the 96th minute. That saw Benfica reach their first quarter-final since 2012, when they were dumped out by eventual winners Chelsea.

They have not made it past this stage since 1990, which is also the last time that they made it all the way to the final. Benfica have a rich pedigree in this competition having won it twice in 1961 and 1962 and reached five other finals. They are not so comfortable among Europe's elite nowadays, but they are one of only two teams, alongside Barcelona, to have scored in every game of this season's competition, and should they carry that on tonight then it could prove to be a very valuable away goal.

Benfica, like Bayern, are still in with a shout of the treble this season should they somehow go all the way in the Champions League. Their gap at the top of the Primeira Liga was cut to two last night courtesy of a win for Sporting, but Porto were beaten so it looks like a two-horse race at the top of the table now. Benfica lead the way in that and have also made it through to the semi-finals of the cup, so it could be a memorable campaign for the club if they keep it up.

Their away form may be of some concern to Bayern as Benfica have won each of their last 11 games on the road, boasting a 100% record in 2016. They last failed to win a game away from home when they were held to a goalless draw by Uniao, but it is 17 matches since their were beaten inside 90 minutes on their travels - a far cry from the start of the season when they lost three of their opening five away games. It is a different story in the Champions League, though, with Benfica having only won three of their last 16 away outings and managing just one clean sheet in their last 10.

PREDICTION: Right, we're 10 minutes away from kickoff at the Allianz Arena, which means that it is time for a prediction! Benfica are in great form coming into this match, but it is fair to say that they haven't been coming up against teams of this calibre in that time. I can't see past a home victory in this game, although the visitors may be able to nick an away goal to give themselves a slither of hope for the return leg. I'm going for 3-1 to Bayern.

These two have met three times before in European competition, and Benfica have so far been a very good omen for Bayern. The Germans have not only won on each occasion, but they have gone on to reach the final those three years too. The first came in the 1975-76 European Cup quarter-finals, when Bayern went on to lift the trophy for a third year in a row, but eight years later they were beaten by Aston Villa in the final having overcome Benfica on the way again.

The last time they met was in round three of the 1995-96 UEFA Cup, and it was a memorable tie in particular for Jurgen Klinsmann as he scored six of his side's seven goals over the two legs. The most recent one was in Lisbon when his brace was added to by Andrea Herzog for a 3-1 victory, which followed a 4-1 first-leg win in Munich where Klinsmann scored all of his side's goals.

Benfica have lost all three of their previous away games against Bayern and conceded 13 goals in the process - an average of more than four per game. They have also only won on two of their previous 21 visits to Germany, losing 13 times and drawing six. Both of those wins have come in their last three visits, but they are tonight looking to become the first Portuguese side to ever win an away game against Bayern. Bayern have won nine and drawn two of the 11 games in which they have hosted Primeira Liga sides before.

Right, the players are out and we're just about ready to go in this Champions League quarter-final! The anthem rings around the stadium, which further increases the volume at the Allianz Arena for what promises to be a fascinating contest between two sides who are full of goals.

KICKOFF: Here we go then! We're underway for the first half of this quarter-final as Bayern look to put one foot in the last four, while Benfica aim to stay in the tie.

What a start for Bayern! Ribery and Lewandowski combine on the edge of the box before the latter gives it out left for Bernat, who swings a cross into the middle. Vidal is in there and gets in front of his man to plant a header home from close range. It is too easy for Bayern, and Benfica's task has just got a lot harder after less than two minutes of this game!

That really is a nightmare start for Benfica, who would have gone into this match hoping to hold out for as long as possible. It certainly doesn't bode well for their chances of keeping the score down tonight.

Benfica are struggling to even get out of their own half at the moment, with Bayern dominating possession as expected. The hosts look dangerous every time they come forward too. This could be a long evening for the visitors.

Almost another chance for the hosts as Costa pings a pass across to Ribery, who not only keeps it in but also picks out a great first-time cross into the middle. It is just too high for Lewandowski, though, and he can't turn his header on target.

Benfica are finally able to break out of defence and launch a counter-attack, but there aren't enough white shirts up there to really cause Bayern an problems. An early cross is aimed towards Mitroglou, but Alaba cuts it out.

SAVE! Costa lines Eliseu up and comfortably beats the full-back on the inside to dip into shooting space. He fires a low drive towards goal, but the keeper is down to make the save.

Ribery scored a sensational goal at the weekend and he goes for another this time, but he slices the effort and it flies a long way high and wide.

CHANCE! Good football from Bayern as they work it from side to side to create space down the flanks. Costa finds Lahm on the overlap down the right and the skipper plays a low cross into the middle that Ederson gets down well to smother at the feet of Lewandowski.

Bayern have the best possession statistics in the Champions League this season, and they have enjoyed 70% of the ball in this one so far too. It is so hard for Benfica to get anything going as Bayern have the ball for such long spells, and then win it back quickly when they do lose it.

Half a chance for Benfica as they finally string a decent run of passes together inside the Bayern half. A cross is eventually swung into the box and Mitroglou rises well, but he steers his header well wide from just inside the penalty area.

CHANCE! Brilliant football from Bayern, and it very nearly provides the second goal. It is another switch of play that creates it as Ribery is released down the left before dropping the ball back to Thiago. He disguises to shoot but instead lifts a delightful cross to Muller, who side-foots a first-time volley towards goal that Ederson needs to save.

YELLOW CARD! The first card of the night is shown to Ribery for a late challenge on Almeida.

Benfica work a short free kick really well and almost get into the box as a result, but Vidal is there to make an important interception at the expense of a corner.

The visitors are starting to get back into this one a little more, and the direct approach almost works for them here. A long boot up from the keeper almost releases Mitroglou, but Alaba keeps his eye on the ball as it comes over his shoulder and is able to hook it away.

That early goal may have had some Benfica fans fearing a rout here, but their side have applied themselves pretty well since falling behind. They have had to give up the vast majority of possession, as expected, but they have limited Bayern from creating too much and their own threat is slowly growing too.

UPDATE: There is another Champions League quarter-final taking place tonight, and there is news of a goal at the Camp Nou. It is a surprise one too, with Atletico taking the lead against reigning champions Barcelona through Fernando Torres.

SHOT! Good break from Benfica as Bayern suddenly look a little bare at the back. It is worked to Gaitan, who races down the left before cutting a cross back into the middle. Lahm goes down to block it and survives a handball appeal in the process, before Eliseu thumps a shot over from outside the area.

The replay shows that the ball did hit Lahm's arm there, and did stop the ball, but the Bayern skipper was very close to Gaitan and the arm wasn't in an unnatural position. It was certainly worth asking the question though!

Brilliant from Bayern once again. They win a free kick in a really good area and make a show about who will take it, with three players in line for it. When it comes to it, though, Thiago just dinks it over the wall towards Muller, but Ederson is alert to the danger and comes out to claim. Very good goalkeeping.

Bayern's possession has dropped to 61% now which, while still dominant, is less than it was in the opening exchanges and less than the hosts may have been expecting. Benfica are proving a tough nut to crack here, since that early goal at least.

CHANCE! Just as I say that, Bayern create another good chance to score. Again it falls to Vidal through a late run into the box, as this time he connects with Muller's cross from the right. He gets between the two central defenders, but puts his header into the ground and it bounces up and over the crossbar.

Benfica's attack have been much more frequent in the last 20 minutes or so than they were in the opening 20 minutes. They launch another here that eventually breaks down on the edge of the box, but Rui Vitoria will be relatively pleased with what he has seen in this match so far.

CHANCE! Half-chance for Bayern as Ribery looks to replicate his weekend heroics with another acrobatic volley. Costa gets down the right to provide the cross, but Ribery's scissor kick this time does not come off.

YELLOW CARD! The second card of the evening is shown to Bernat for a foul on Pizzi, dragging his man down to halt an attack.

Concern for Renato Sanches here, who has been very impressive in this first half but is in pain here after landing on the ball. The physio comes on, but I would be very surprised if he couldn't continue after this.

Magnificent defending from Vidal right at the death in this first half as he throws himself in the way of a Gaitan effort after a mini scramble in the box. Benfica are ending this half on top!

The first half comes to an end at the Allianz Arena, then, and it is Bayern Munich who go into the break ahead. It is certainly not as bad as Benfica may have feared following their nightmare start to the game, and they came back into the match as the half wore on. Rui Vitoria's side may be behind at the interval, but he will be pretty pleased with what he has seen so far.

The match was less than two minutes old when Bayern broke the deadlock through Vidal, who stole into the box to glance a header past the keeper from close range. Ribery and Lewandowski were both involved in the build-up before giving it out to Bernat, who provided the cross for Vidal to nod home.

It was all Bayern in the opening stages, both in terms of possession and chances, and the next best opening arrived in the 21st minute when Bayern once again created space for the cross by switching play, which they have done to great effect today. Thiago disguised his cross into the area to pick out Muller, but Ederson was there to deny the German's first-time volley.

Ederson has been called upon a number of times, although really clear chances have been relatively few and far between by Bayern's usual standards. The Brazilian keeper has thwarted Lewandowski with a brave dive at his feet after Lahm put a low ball into the middle, while he also kept out compatriot Douglas Costa from the edge of the area. He has been very alert to danger on the whole, including one occasion when he raced off his line to collect the ball after a really clever free kick from Bayern.

Benfica did come back into the half as it wore on and even created a half-chance towards the end of the half that Vidal needed to block with a last-ditch sliding challenge. They will be desperate to get a second goal here and, if they can repeat that first-half performance with a goal to boot then we could well be on for a major upset in this tie.

KICKOFF: Here we go again, then! Bayern get us back underway for the second half as they look to put a bit more distance between themselves and Benfica.

Important piece of defending by Lindelof as he clears the ball away from deep inside his own area after a quick throw had almost caught Benfica out. Lewandowski was lurking, but Lindelof got there first.

The resulting corner is played out to the edge of the box for Vidal to run on to, and he can't turn down the volley. However, he gets it all wrong and, it Ribery didn't stop it, it would have gone out for a throw-in.

Lewandowski has been very quiet so far tonight, but he thinks he has a chance here after being played in by Muller. His shot is straight at the keeper, though, and the linesman's flag is raised anyway.

Bayern have quickly resumed control of possession in this second half, but Benfica are remaining resolute in defence. It has been a stubborn performance from the visitors since that early goal.

More good defending from Benfica as Jardel sticks his head in the way of a Costa effort, although he is now feeling the effects. He will require treatment here, but should be fine to continue.

CHANCE! What a chance for Benfica to get that all-important away goal! Jonas has been pretty much anonymous tonight, but he sparks into life inside the area, flicking the ball past Alaba to send himself through on goal but then putting his effort too close to Neuer who makes the save.

CLOSE! Bayern go straight up the other end of the field and come close themselves, with Bernat firing a low strike narrowly past the far post.

YELLOW CARD! Jonas becomes the first Benfica man in the book tonight for a late challenge on Vidal, which means that he will miss the second leg.

BAYERN MUNICH SUB: The first change of the evening comes from the home side as Javi Martinez replaces Kimmich.

YELLOW CARD! Lindelof goes into the referee's notebook for dragging down Lewandowski after losing the ball.

UPDATE: There has been another goal at the Camp Nou, and it has gone the way of Barcelona! Luis Suarez has levelled things up against 10-man Atletico Madrid, who had Torres sent off after he had given the visitors the lead.

CHANCES! Oh my word, more chances for Benfica! Quite how one of these hasn't gone in, I'm not sure! The best chance falls to Jonas again, but he puts his effort straight into the gut of Martinez. A mini-scramble ensues before the ball once again drops to Jonas, but this time he fires it off target.

Benfica can't afford to keep missing such chances if they are to pull off an upset here. Jonas has now had two openings that you would expect him to score considering his form, but Bayern have survived.

Guardiola has been prowling the touchline from the first whistle, as he always does, but he won't be very happy with what he has seen so far. Bayern have been far below their usual level tonight.

BAYERN SUB: Another change for Bayern here as Kingsley Coman comes on in place of Douglas Costa for the final 20 minutes.

BENFICA SUB: Benfica also make a change, with Raul Jimenez coming on in place of Mitroglou.

Vidal concedes a free kick inside his own half that Bayern can lift into the box, but Gaitan's delivery is just beyond all of his teammates, going all the way through to safety almost in slow motion.

Two quick attacks in succession from Bayern sees them threaten a little more, with the second led by Ribery down the left. He pulls a low cross back into the middle that Lewandowski tries to flick goalwards, but he can't get enough on it and Ederson collects it with ease.

UPDATE: Barcelona have completed the turnaround against Atletico, with Suarez doubling his personal tally. It is now 2-1 to the defending champions, although that is not the worst result for Atletico by any means.

Benfica are in a difficult situation in the closing stages here. On the one hand, a 1-0 defeat is not a disaster for them at all and will keep them very much in the tie, but they may not be lucky enough to catch Bayern on another off day. The German outfit could be there for the taking if Benfica go for it tonight, but that would also risk Bayern hitting them at the other end.

Just 10 remain in this match, and while Bayern are on course for the win, it could be Benfica who leave the Allianz as the happier team here. The hosts would have expected a more comfortable cushion to take to Lisbon, although they will be confident of scoring in the second leg too.

SAVE! Bayern create their first real chance of this second half as Ribery charges into the area from the left flank, getting a bit of luck on his way. His goes from goal from a tight angle, but Ederson makes the save with his feet.

BENFICA SUB: A second change from the visitors sees Jonas depart to be replaced by Eduardo Salvio.

There are a few holes beginning to appear in the Benfica defence now and Lewandowski runs through one of them down the left flank. However, he takes too long on the ball and is eventually dispossessed as another attack goes begging for Bayern.

CHANCE! Bayern win a corner which Lindelof has to go off for, leaving Benfica a man down for the delivery. Ribery swings it in and Lewandowski rises to meet it for a half-chance, but his header is just too high.

BAYERN SUB: Muller has been far short of his best this evening, and his night is over as he gets replaced by Mario Gotze.

Bayern left it late against Juventus, and they will be hoping for more of the same tonight. A one-goal lead is by no means a safe one for the second leg.

CHANCE! Huge chance for Bayern to grab the second! It is so nearly wonderfully worked as the ball is fed in to Lewandowski, who is clean through on goal. However, he tries to put one more pass in to leave Lahm with an open goal, and puts it too far in front of his skipper as the chance goes begging!

BENFICA SUB: The visitors make their third and final change as Samaris replaces Pizzi.

We are now into the second of five added minutes at the end of this match.

It is all over at the Allianz Arena, and the hosts have to settle for just a one-goal lead. It is less than many would have been expecting, particularly after Bayern took the lead with less than two minutes on the clock through Vidal. They may have been fearing a rout then, but the visitors defended stoutly and may feel that they should have even come away with a draw. Even so, the one-goal deficit leaves them in a decent position heading into next week's second leg, with this tie still very much in the balance.

That is all we have time for this evening! Thank you very much for joining Sports Mole for tonight's Champions League clash as Bayern are limited to a 1-0 victory over Benfica in the first leg of their quarter-final. I will leave you with our match report, and be sure to stick around for reaction from the game too. The European action continues tomorrow night, so be sure to check back in with us for more live coverage of those games! From me, though, it is goodbye for now!