Conor Gallagher conceded a penalty as Benfica thrashed Atletico Madrid to continue their perfect start to this season’s Champions League.
Kerem Akturkoglu gave the Portuguese side the lead in Lisbon with a composed 13th minute finish.
Four minutes after coming on as part of a triple half-time substitution, Atletico’s Gallagher was deemed to have caught Benfica’s Vangelis Pavlidis in the penalty area after a Video Assistant Referee (VAR) check.
Former Real Madrid forward Angel Di Maria duly converted from the spot.
England midfielder Gallagher, who joined Atletico from Chelsea this summer, saw his night go from bad to worse as he was beaten to the ball by Alexander Bah from a Benfica corner, as he headed home the hosts’ third in the 75th minute.
Orkun Kokcu added a fourth from the penalty spot after a sloppy foul from Reinildo Mandava.
Pavlidis his the post for the home side just before half-time, while Atletico struck the crossbar at 1-0 down in the first half through Samuel Lino’s mishit cross.
Benfica narrowly beat Red Star Belgrade 2-1 in their Champions League opener last month. Atletico had defeated RB Leipzig by the same scoreline.
BBC