Good evening everyone and welcome to our live coverage as Benfica face AS Monaco at home in Group C of the Champions League. The Eagles are hoping for three vital points that would help them to stay in contention for qualification, but they are up against a travelling Monaco side who are so far undefeated in the tournament.

AS are yet to concede a goal in the Champions League this season, with a win tonight helping to push Leonardo Jardim's side closer towards qualification into the knockout stages. The odds may be slightly against the travelling side tonight, however, given that Jardim is looking to lead the first-ever Monaco team to a victory at the Estadio da Luz in Lisbon.

Monaco's defensive qualities have somewhat overshadowed their inabilities going forward. Jardim's charges have only scored one goal in the group at this stage, with that strike coming in a slender 1-0 victory over Bayer Leverkusen on the opening night of the tournament.

Three points in their opening game was followed by a further two points for Monaco, who played out goalless draws with Zenit St Petersburg and Benfica. Despite the lack of goals, AS go into this encounter on the back of a six-game unbeaten run, which also sees them sitting in seventh spot in Ligue 1.

Benfica are well aware of their precarious position in the group. If they were to lose tonight their chances of qualifying will be incredibly slim. The Eagles have hardly been in poor form this season, with Jorge Jesus and his men sitting in top spot in the top tier of the Portuguese domestic league.

However, crucial performances in the domestic league have failed to permeate into the European arena. As it stands, from three games Benfica have picked up just one point following damaging defeats at the hands of both Zenit and Leverkusen.

Benfica coach Jesus has been speaking about his side's position in the table in the build-up to this fixture, with the coach telling UEFA's official website:

"To continue to play in the Champions League we have to win. That gives us a chance of going through. If we do win it will be because of our game plan. If we don't, it won't be for a lack of experience: we know what decisions to make to get results in this comeptition.

"Looking at our performances in this group, we could have scored more goals. We are a creative team who usually score goals, so I think we will soon start to score more. These things can happen in football; we could quickly regain our flair and attacking quality. Tomorrow I imagine there will be two even teams. We may have the advantage, playing in our stadium with our fans behind us, and this will be very important for us to beat Monaco and stay on course to progress."

Some team news for you now....

BENFICA STARTING XI: Cesar; Luisao, Pereira, Jardel, Almeida, Samaris, Gaitan, Salvio, Perez, Derley, Talisca

BENFICA SUBSTITUTES: Artur, Cesar, Benito, Cristante, Lima, Pizzi, Tiago

MONACO STARTING XI: Subasic; Fabinho, Kurzawa, Carvalho, Raggi, Moutinho, Kondogbia, Toulalan, Ocampos, Ferreira-Carrasco, Traore

MONACO SUBSTITUTES: Stekelenburg, Abdennour, Dirar, Bakayoko, Bernardo Silva, Germain, Martia

Benfica have welcomed back the attacking threat of Nicolas Gaitan, who will look to provide a create threat in combination with Greek playmaker Andreas Samaris. The hosts will feature the attacking presence of Brazilian striker Derley as he partners fellow striker Talisca.

As expected, Monaco will be led by striker Lacina Traore with Dimitar Berbatov out with an injury. The French side will be given creative support from both Yannick Ferreira Carrasco and Lucas Ocampos, while combative midfielder Joao Moutinho will look to knit together the middle of the park and the frontline.

Monaco know that a victory tonight would take them towards the prospect of qualification, however they'll need to buck their recent trend of being unable to find the net. Tonight's task has been handed to Traore, but this Monaco side do have the ability to grab goals across the park.

Monaco coach Jardim has been speaking about the importance of tonight's game, with the AS manager telling UEFA's official website:

"This is a very important match for us – another game against a good Benfica side. The group standings don't reflect their quality. As for us, we would have liked to have scored more so far, but we are also one of the teams with least goals conceded. Balance is crucial. We must keep the stability we had in the first three matches and then try to be more effective up front.

"I think all four teams are very even. This will be an important match for Benfica, not only for their future in this competition but also because there is a Europa League place at stake. I have never managed to beat Benfica, though I have been getting closer. Monaco have never won at Benfica, but there is a first time for everything."

I think this evening's outcome will be decided on whoever wins the midfield battle in Lisbon. Travelling AS will be dependent on the skills of Moutinho in taking the ball forward and connecting up the midfield with attack. Benfica, however, possess a pressing-machine in the shape of Enzo Perez, who is unlikely to give the opposition much time on the ball. If the hosts can put Monaco under pressure, it could allow the likes of Gaitan and Talisca to show their quality going forward.

Talisca is evidently Benfica's key player this evening. He's been the one performer on the domestic front to help push the Eagles into top position. The striker has so far collected eight goals in nine Primeira Liga appearances despite not opening his CL account this season. This comes in stark comparison to the team's other major frontmen, Lima and Derley, who have notched just three goals in their 15 combined appearances.

Monaco have failed to set their domestic campaign alight so far, and this is one predicament midfielder dynamo Jeremy Toulalan is well aware of. He has, however, made it clear that tonight's clash will be given the focused treatment that it deserves:

"It's a different competition, this is our fourth match in Europe. It's more problematic for the next league game, which becomes a must-win. For me though, it doesn't change anything for the game in Lisbon."

Both sides harbour some fantastic passers and this could really play into the hands of the neutrals this evening, given that Lisbon has been subject to showers of rain throughout today; setting up the pitch at the Estadio da Luz to become a ballplayer's dream surface.

One interesting stat for the outcome of the game is that Benfica had won five out of their last seven against Ligue 1 opposition in the tournament, that was before matchday three's draw at Monaco. Could AS turn the tide of history by grabbing a win away in Portugal?

Here's a view of the stadium a little earlier this evening:

Five minutes until kickoff now and I think it's time for me to give a prediction. I really think Monaco have enough to win this one given what three points would potentially mean for Jardim's men. They've got enough strength in midfield to profit away from home, while goals are surely soon to come for their struggling forwards. I'm going to say 2-1 to the visitors.

The teams are out on the pitch as they finish off the handshakes ahead of kickoff. Benfica will be playing in their home red strip, with the visitors wearing their blue away kit.

KICKOFF! Benfica get us underway in Lisbon, kicking from right to left in red. They look to ease into the fixture with a display of short passes around the back, before the ball is lumped forward and neatly won by AS.

The hosts show their attacking quality early on with a move down the right channel and a cross is swung into the box, it's easing pickings for Carvalho though, who reads the play and heads away.

SHOT! Salvio draws a comfortable save from the Monaco keeper following a marauding run forwards. The midfielder shows his class as he picks the ball up deep inside the Monaco half before jinking towards the box. His shot is a little too weak to trouble Subasic, though.

Monaco sense their first sniff of a chance as Talisca gives the ball away in midfield. The French side break with Ferreira-Carrasco, whose cross is aimed at Traore, but the Benfica defence clear their lines with little difficulty.

Benfica are looking the better suited of the two teams so far, with the hosts displaying some neat, short exchanges that have AS on the back-foot inside their own half.

Monaco's tactics are quite clear already - they're looking to pick out Traore at every given moment. They enjoy a comfortable spell of possession, however Ocampos is tackled before he gets chance to send the ball into the box from the left flank.

SHOT! Salvio is causing some problems and he drifts out to the right this time to send in a cross, which is cleared only as far as Gaitan. The midfielder shapes to let one off from distance, but can only drag his shot wide of the goal from the edge of the area.

Benfica are starting to look really threatening now. Talisca earns himself some space in the middle of the pitch and he looks to pick out Almeida with an incisive pass. However, Subasic reads it well and comes out to collect the loose ball.

The hosts are almost in again as Salvio produces some brilliant skill to get in behind the Monaco defence, but his teammates are unable to keep up with his play resulting in limited crossing options. He attempts to dink the ball back across the box leaving Raggi to clear the danger.

Gaitan is showing some real class already. This time his back heel sets up Almeida, who can only fire a hideous shot high and wide of the target with his teammates looking a little perplexed.

Monaco need to gather themselves as they're looking like they're fading out of this fixture already. They've yet to get their collective foot on the ball so far and they're affording far too much time and space to the hosts in the middle of the pitch.

Talisca is causing problems again, this time as the ball is pumped long. The Brazilian is able to bring it down against the challenge of Raggi, however the creative midfielder drops to the deck and we have a short stoppage while he recovers.

CLOSE! Gaitan's showboating almost costs Benfica dear as he gives the ball away needlessly in the middle of the pitch. Toulalan feeds it out wide, where Fabinho is found on the overlap. The full-back produces a teasing ball into the box where it looks like Traore might have a tap-in. However, goalkeeper Cesar has other ideas and he pulls off a wonderful save to push the ball out of the path of the AS striker.

YELLOW CARD! Traore personifies Monaco's frustrations as he bundles into the back of Almeida. A needless one, really.

YELLOW CARD! Things have become a little scrappy in the last few minutes. Samaris is booked this time as he tries to win the ball back a little too quickly.

These past few minutes will be well-suited to Monaco. Benfica have been far the better side so far and any form of respite for the French side will come as a welcome relief.

These two sides have only scored a few goals between them in this tournament and it's starting to show in this fixture. Benfica have looked great going forward, but things tend to break down in the final third. As for AS, they've had very little to go by in the opening stages, with Traore cutting an isolated figure up front.

It's still the hosts who hold the key to this fixture though and they almost carve out a chance with Savlio inside the box. He breaks out towards the right and has two options available to him. Instead of picking out the pass, he decides to fire a shot across the face of goal, which is comfortable blocked by Carvalho.

Monaco hit back now following some neat work from Ferreira-Carrasco down in the corner of the pitch, he beats the full-back but is thwarted before he can get a cross into the box. AS are hanging in there, but they've done very little going forward. It's evident that both sides have been suffering from struggles in the final third.

YELLOW CARD! Perez is shown a yellow card now as he flies in on unfairly on Kondogbia.

SAVE! What an effort. AS win a free kick which is curled into the box. Kurzawa rises highest and sends in a wonderful header towards goal, however Cesar responds with a world-class save to flick the ball over the crossbar. Great stop, but the linesman also has his flag up too.

Ferreira-Carrasco leads AS with another attack as he breaks forward into the box after ghosting past two defenders. However, Jardel is having none of it and he comes across to make a great interception.

Given their lacklustre start, Monaco won't be too down at how this half has played out. They've had two decent chances despite barely threatening when going forward. Benfica have controlled the fixture, but have been unable to carve out anything of note in the final third.

CLOSE! Benfica should be ahead, but Monaco are still in it thanks to Raggi. The ball is fed into the box where Gaitan picks it up. He throws a dummy to beat the first defender and open up some space for a shot. He pulls the trigger only to see the ball cannon off of an advancing Raggi, with the ball diverting over the crossbar.

The referee brings an intriguing half of football to a close, but I must say I'm very disappointed by the qualify of football in the final third - at both ends.

Benfica started the half with great enterprise; especially with Talisca pulling the strings in midfield and Gaitan providing some neat touches in and around the box. However, the hosts have failed to make their possession count as things have frequently broken down close to goal. You can probably see why they haven't been able to notch a win so far in this tournament...

Monaco have been passengers for much of the first half, but you might argue that they've also had the best of the minimal chances in the fixture. The visitors' midfield has been far too respectful of Benfica and has allowed the Eagles to operate with uninterrupted freedom. Going forward, Ferreira-Carrasco has been their most impressive player, though Traore looks too isolated to have the required impact on the outcome of this game.

After an exciting start, the pace of the game slackened and this may well benefit Monaco. All they need is some decent service to be put into their frontline and they could still get goals in this encounter. Saying that, if Benfica found their shooting boots they've shown the quality in midfield required to win this game.

Cesar has been a key figure in this encounter. He pulled off a great stop to deny Monaco following good work from Ferreira-Carrasco. The desired cutting edge is evidently missing from both sides tonight.

The hosts quite clearly dominated the first half and the stats back this up, with Benfica holding 59% of possession in the initial 45 minutes while generating 23 dangerous attacks. All they need to do is find the required skill to provide the important few touches in front of goal.

Benfica will sense this game is there for the taking if they can improve up front. They've got the quality to create things and pull themselves away from being eliminated from the tournament. Following results earlier today, the hosts need to avoid defeat otherwise they will be out of the Champions League tonight.

KICKOFF! Monaco get the game back underway, I think the next goal will be crucial - whoever gets it will probably win...

CHANCE! It's the visitors who threaten early in the second period and it's no surprise that the effort comes via Ferreira-Carrasco. He gets the better of the full-back Almeida, but his cross into the box just misses Traore in the centre of the box.

AS have started brightly and they are almost in again. Ocampos, who was quiet in the first half, gets past the full-back but his cross is far too tame to trouble Benfica. Kurzawa then has his hands on his hips after doing well to rise above the defenders before sending his headed effort tamely wide from the centre of the box.

Traore has up his efforts from the first half and he shows great feet and pace to break from the Monaco half. He charges forwards and feels like he's been nudged on the edge of the box, but the referee is unmoved.

SAVE! Subasic pulls off a standout stop to deny Tulisca. The Brazilian midfielder finds himself in space on the edge of the area and calls for the ball. He sends in a curling effort first-time with his left, leaving the Monaco keeper to pull himself skywards to tip the ball over the bar.

Monaco I think have sensed the chance laid out in front of them to go and grab a vital three points. This time the play is spread out to the right, where Ferreira-Carrasco wins a corner. The delivery is cleared as far as Toulalan, who makes a hash of his effort and sends the ball high and wide into the stands.

SAVE! Fantastic stop from Cesar and he may just have kept his side in the tournament. It's Ferreira-Carrasco yet again who spins his defender and finds himself one-on-one with the keeper. He gets his shot away, but Cesar makes himself huge and gets enough on the ball to keep it out of the net.

CLOSE! Ocampos is furious! Ferreira-Carrasco breaks into space down the right flank, he cuts inside without looking up to fire off a shot straight into a defender. If he'd had picked his head up and looked left, his teammates was in acres of space calling for the ball.

SUBSITUTES: Benfica replace Samaris with Lima, while Monaco haul off Ocampos who is replaced by Nabil Dirar.

CLOSE! Lima almost makes the difference having been introduced as a sub. He's left free at the back-post, but his shot is deflected over the crossbar for a corner. A lucky escape for Monaco...

CLOSE! Benfica have wrestled a bit of the possession back, but they give the ball away in midfield, with Traore making use of the loose leather. He fires off a shot from outside of the box, which is thankfully deflected inches wide of the SLB post.

CLOSE! Monaco nearly find the perfect opening as Dirar hustles down the left channel. He sticks a ball up to the pick post, where Ferreira-Carrasco wins the knock-down. The ball drops to Moutinho who looks to turn and shoot, but he's challenged at the pivotal moment and Benfica clear.

The visitors have really come out of the traps in the second period. It looked as though they weren't up for those, though Jardim's men now look like they're in the ascendancy.

Monaco are very, very lucky. Moutinho gives away a foul in the middle of the pitch as Benfica look to be breaking two-on-two. Instead of allowing the play to continue, the referee blows up for a free kick and the hosts have missed out on a great counter attack. He should have let play continue...

We're into the final 15 minutes and Benfica desperately need something but they're far from looking like the team we saw in the opening stages of the game.

SHOT! Kurzawa shows some enterprise this time for AS. The full-back does brilliantly to track back and win the ball inside the Benfica half. He then takes it forward before unleashing a stinging shot at Cesar, who blocks well with his hands in the centre of goal.

Raggi does brilliantly to keep out Benfica by rising in the box to head away a dangerous cross. He's taken a knock to the head and we'll have a few minutes of stoppage as he recovers on the pitch.

AS are still sniffing out three points as we head into the final 10 minutes of the game. Kurzawa picks out Ferreira-Carrasco at the back-post, but he is penalised for handball as he tries to bring the cross under control.

Have Benfica pulled this out of the bag? It looks like it... It's crazy marking from Monaco at a corner and they leave Talisica completely unmarked at the back-post. The hosts win the knockdown from the corner, leaving the Brazilian free to rifle home at the back stick.

Songs now ring out around the Estadio da Luz, which has been largely quiet all evening. Monaco have thrown this one away really, they've played brilliantly in this half, but have been let down by some rather suspect defending in the final stages.

Benfica are responding to the chants as they look to hold out for an important victory. This could throw them into the mix for qualification now, albeit that progression may still be a long shot. Monaco looked to pump it long, but the Eagles keep their heads to clear from the back.

CLOSE! Monaco's Kurzawa has been troubling Benfica all night and he should really score. He climbs highest to meet a corner, but instead of finding the net fires his header well over the bar. Not too sure Cesar could have helped out had that one been on target.

SUBSTITUTE: Tiago comes on to replace Gaitan as Jesus looks to run down the clock from the sidelines.

We're going to have four minutes of additional time in Lisbon...

Benfica are taking time out of the game in the corner of the pitch. It's nothing too scratchy as they move the ball nicely across the pitch. Lima jinks in and out of Dirar to earn an important free kick.

Lima is a bit immature as he fires the free kick off on goal, only to see it fly over the bar. He really shouldn't be handing possession back that easily.

Someway, somehow Benfica have managed to remain in the Champions League. The hosts faded drastically following a sprightly start and it looked as though Monaco would be most likely to take all three points. However, some lacklustre defending from the visitors gave Talisca the chance to earn all three points and he took it obligingly. Benfica will have to do a lot better in the round if they want to harbour any ambitions of progression from the group, though.