LISBON, Portugal (Interstat) — In a match that followed the script nearly to the letter, league-leading Benfica secured a hard-fought 2-1 victory over visiting Alverca in Primeira Liga play on Sunday, Feb. 8, 2026, at a rain-slicked Estádio do Sport Lisboa e Benfica.

The result, which aligned with the Interstat game simulator’s projection of a 2-1 Benfica win, extended the Eagles’ unbeaten run in domestic competition this season to 16 matches. Benfica now holds a record of 12 wins and four draws in league play. Alverca, fighting near the bottom of the table, fell to a record of five wins, 10 losses and three draws.

Despite a pre-match ELO rating system giving Benfica a 99.5 percent probability to win, the underdog visitors from the Lisbon District made the powerhouse hosts work for every advantage. The game was a physical, stop-start affair, littered with five yellow cards, three of which were shown to Benfica players.

Benfica’s early pressure told in the 16th minute. Midfielder Andreas Schjelderup opened the scoring, finishing a move to give the hosts a lead they would not relinquish. The goal seemed to settle Benfica’s nerves, but Alverca refused to capitulate.

The visitors found a shock equalizer in the 30th minute. Substitute Figueiredo, who had just entered the fray, made an immediate impact by netting the goal that leveled the score at 1-1. The goal energized Alverca and silenced large portions of the home crowd, proving the pre-match statistics wrong, if only temporarily.

The second half became a tense battle of attrition. Benfica controlled possession and probed the Alverca defense, which held firm under increasing pressure. As the match entered its final stages, it appeared Alverca might cling to a valuable and unexpected point.

The decisive moment arrived in the 86th minute. Benfica forward Anísio Cabral emerged as the late hero, scoring the winning goal to break Alverca’s resistance and secure three points for the league leaders. The assist was credited to defender Tomás Araújo, who joined teammates Sidny Cabral, Lincoln, Matheus Mendes and Gianluca Prestianni as players recording assists in the contest.

The victory maintains Benfica’s firm grip on first place in the Primeira Liga. The team’s next match is a league fixture at Santa Clara on Friday, Feb. 13. For Alverca, the narrow defeat, a mirror of the 2-1 loss to Benfica in the reverse fixture on Aug. 31, 2025, represents another missed opportunity for points in a difficult season. They will look to rebound when they travel to face Tondela, also on Friday, Feb. 13.

The match underscored Benfica’s resilience in finding a way to win, even on a day when their performance was not at its fluent best, while Alverca demonstrated a stubborn competitiveness that has seen them earn draws against stronger sides this season.