Good evening! Thank you very much for joining Sports Mole for tonight's Champions League quarter-final second leg between Benfica and Bayern Munich. The German outfit were heavy favourites to progress from this tie when the draw was made, but at the halfway stage it is very much still hanging in the balance following an impressive display from Benfica in Munich last week. It is all to play for tonight, so let's start with a look at the two teams who will be taking to the field...

BAYERN STARTING XI: Neuer; Lahm, Martinez, Kimmich, Alaba; Alonso, Vidal, Costa, Thiago, Ribery; Muller

BAYERN SUBS: Lewandowski, Rafinha, Bernat, Gotze, Rode, Coman

While we wait for Benfica to confirm their team news, let's start with a look at Bayern, and there is one glaring omission for the visitors as Robert Lewandowski only makes the bench this evening. He was uncharacteristically quiet in the first leg and again failed to get on the scoresheet at the weekend, but it is still a major surprise to see him left out tonight. He has 44 goals in 49 games for club and country this season, but has to make do with a place on the bench here.

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His absence is likely to see Thomas Muller push up into the most advanced role, and it certainly isn't a bad replacement to be able to call upon. The German was also subdued in the first leg but, like Lewandowski, is in career-best goalscoring form this season and will be a danger if Benfica give him any space inside the box whatsoever. With his movement and the likes of Ribery and Costa providing him with ammunition, that is more than likely to happen at least once tonight.

In all, Guardiola has made just the two changes to the side that started the first leg eight days ago, with Juan Bernat joining Lewandowski in dropping to the bench, Javi Martinez and Xabi Alonso are the players to come in, with the latter expected to hold in midfield alongside either Thiago or Vidal, who played deep in the first leg with license to break forward - as shown with his early goal. Gotze drops back to the bench having started at the weekend, while Robben is still sidelined by a groin injury and so does not feature at all.

You can never be entirely sure what formation Pep Guardiola is going to go with, but it appears like he is switching back to a defensive quartet, with Martinez likely to fill in alongside Kimmich at the heart of that back four. That should allow Alaba to move back out to his favoured left side having been used as a central defender for some time now, while Philipp Lahm starts on the right. Lahm is today making his 103rd Champions League appearance, equalling the German record he now jointly holds with Oliver Kahn.

BENFICA STARTING XI: Ederson; Almeida, Jardel, Lindelöf, Eliseu; Fejsa, Renato, Salvio, Carcela, Pizzi; Raul

BENFICA SUBS: Paulo Lopes, Semedo, Luisão, Samaris, Talisca, Guedes, Jovic

While Bayern are missing their main striker through choice, Benfica are forced to leave theirs out this evening due to suspension. Jonas picked up a yellow card in the first leg that rules him out of this game, which is a massive blow for the hosts. He has 18 goals in as many games for the club so far in 2016, but he did also miss a couple of very presentable chances for a crucial away goal in the first leg.

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Jonas is not the only key attacker that the hosts are missing today, with Gaitan also absent having picked up a thigh injury. That means that Benfica are without arguably their two best players, at least in an attacking sense, this evening, which makes their already difficult task a whole lot harder. Eduardo Salvio replaces Gaitain on the right flank, while Raul Jimenez starts up top having scored the winner against Academica at the weekend.

There is also no Kostas Mitroglou for the home side in the squad tonight, again due to injury, so the hosts find themselves very limited going forward. Mehdi Carcela comes into the side for Mitroglou and is expected to play out wide left in a 4-4-1-1 formation, with Fejsa also returning in the middle of the park. He will partner Renato Sanches there after the youngster was hugely impressive in the first leg.

There are no changes at the back for the home side, despite the recent return of captain Luisao to the matchday squad. He was an unused sub at the weekend, but after a long spell on the sidelines with a broken arm, Rui Vitoria has opted not to throw him straight in at the deep end by starting this game. He may get a few minutes towards the end, but it isn't exactly the best match in which to be short of match fitness.

It is a Benfica side lacking the majority of the players who might have hurt Bayern, then, which in turn will significantly hurt their chances of progressing into the semi-finals for the first time in 26 years. Even with those injuries and suspensions, though, they will surely take heart from their performance in the first leg, when they matched Bayern for long spells and perhaps should have even come away in a stronger position.

They have still surpassed many expectations by merely being in the tie for the return leg this evening, although Bayern boss Pep Guardiola has continuously warned that Benfica are a dangerous team to come up against. The statistics back him up too, with the Portuguese outfit having won 20 of their last 22 games in all competitions, including nine of their last 10. The only exception in that time was, of course, the first leg in this tie, while their only other defeat since their final Champions League group game in December came at the hands of Atletico Madrid.

It is fair to say that the majority of teams they have come up against in that time are nowhere near the calibre of Bayern Munich, though, and Benfica will know that they need to raise their game to another level if they are to pull off an upset tonight. Wolfsburg came undone in their second leg against Real Madrid last night, so it is only Benfica who are flying the flag for the true underdogs in this competition now.

The Estadio da Luz has always been a notoriously difficult place to play at for visiting teams, though, and the statistics back that up. They have won eight of their last nine games here in all competitions since that 2-1 defeat to Atletico Madrid on matchday six of this competition, and looking even further back they have picked up 29 victories in their last 33 outings here since December 2014.

Unfortunately for Benfica, just a win may not be good enough this evening. A 1-0 would take them to extra time, but not many teams are able to prevent Bayern from scoring so it could be that Benfica will need to win by two or more goals tonight. They have won 12 of their 19 home games this season by a margin that would get them through tonight, but it is a different story in this competition, with only one win by two or more goals in their last nine Champions League outings in front of their own fans.

Even with Jonas, Gaitan and Mitroglou all missing, Benfica will fancy their chances of at least scoring tonight as they have only failed to do so once at home all season, in a 3-0 defeat to Sporting back in October. Any goal would give them a chance, particularly considering their defensive record here at the Estadio da Luz. Once again, they rarely come up against a team with Bayern's attacking prowess, but they have kept 21 clean sheets in their last 33 home games in all competitions.

Benfica are still in with a shout of the treble this season if they can somehow overcome Bayern tonight, maintaining their two-point lead at the top of the Primeira Division table with a come-from-behind 2-1 victory over Academica on Saturday. They are also in the cup semi-finals, and the last two occasions that they have made it past the quarters in this competition, they have gone all the way to the final - although both of those were a long time ago.

They remain major underdogs to progress, though, despite Guardiola's constant warnings about Benfica's quality. The hosts will certainly have a chance if Bayern have another off day like they did in the first leg, but that is a very rare occurrence for the German champions and Benfica may not be so lucky this time around. Guardiola has made a big call with his team selection, which should act as a warning shot to all of his players that no-one's position in the side is guaranteed.

Guardiola himself is under pressure to deliver the Champions League before his summer move to Manchester City, having failed to do so so far despite taking over when the club were European champions. The former Barcelona boss has already stressed that only the treble will do for his side this season, and while the Bundesliga appears to be more or less sewn up after last weekend's results, there is still work to be done in both the DFB-Pokal and this competition.

Bayern's opened their lead at the top of the Bundesliga to seven points at the weekend courtesy of a 3-1 victory at Stuttgart, while Dortmund could only manage a draw in their Ruhr derby against Schalke. That result all but guarantees another title for Bayern, with only five games of the season remaining and Bayern's goal difference being far superior to that of any other team in the league in the unlikely event that it would come down to that.

In all competitions they come into tonight's match having won their last six outings, and with only one defeat in their last 20 stretching back to the first week of December. They have kept five clean sheets in their ongoing seven-match unbeaten streak, and another tonight would guarantee their place in the semi-finals of this competition for a fifth season in a row. That is an impressive achievement, but they have only gone on to lift the trophy once on the previous four occasions they have reached the semis.

A win or a draw would be enough for Bayern tonight, and you have to go back to December 5 for the last time that they were beaten in an away game. They have avoided defeat in 11 matches on the road since then, winning eight and drawing three. Another away victory tonight would see them pick up three in a row for the first time since September-October, which is a bit of a surprise considering how dominant Bayern usually are.

It is their away record in the Champions League that will be of main concern tonight, though, and it should give Benfica plenty of confidence too. Guardiola's side have only won two of their last eight Champions League outings on the road, both of which came in the group stages this season against Olympiacos and Dinamo Zagreb. It gets worse too - they are winless in their last six away Champions League knockout games (W3 D3) stretching more than two years.

The most recent of those came in Turin after they were drawn against last season's runners-up Juventus in the last 16, and the tie certainly lived up to its billing. Bayern were dominant in the first hour of that first leg in Italy, but let a two-goal lead slip as Juve rescued a 2-2 draw to keep themselves in the tie. They then raced into a 2-0 lead of their own in the second leg in Munich, but then it was Bayern's turn to fight back, forcing extra time late on and going on to score twice without reply in the additional 30 minutes, wrapping up a 6-4 aggregate victory.

PREDICTION: We're 10 minutes away from kickoff at the Estadio da Luz, which means that it is time for a prediction! Benfica will need to push for the win tonight, but Bayern are likely to see plenty of the ball and if they are also afforded space then they could do some damage. The hosts' chances have been hit with the absence of their three biggest goal threats, so I can see Bayern picking up a 2-0 win here and going through 3-0 on aggregate.

These two sides have met in three previous European ties before this one, and Benfica have been a lucky charm for Bayern so far. The Germans have won on all three occasions, and have also gone on to reach the final of the competition each time. They beat Benfica on their way to winning the European Cup in 1976 and the UEFA Cup in 1996, as well as on their way to being runners-up in the European Cup in 1982, when they were beaten by Aston Villa in the final.

They don't often squander a leading position in European ties either. On the 49 occasions in which Bayern have won the home first leg they have progressed 41 times, although when they have had just a 1-0 lead to defend they have won two and lost two. The overall success rate after a 1-0 home first-leg victory is better, though, with 19 of 28 teams (68%) having made it through from that position.

Benfica have lost just two of their previous 19 home games against German opposition, winning 10 of those and drawing seven. One of those defeats did come to Bayern back in 1995, however, while the visitors don't even need to win this evening - a draw will do and even a defeat could be enough if they manage to get an away goal.

Right, the players are out and we're just about ready to go for this huge quarter-final second leg. There is a great atmosphere at the Estadio da Luz as you would expect as the hosts look to overturn their one-goal deficit from the first leg.

KICKOFF: Bayern get us underway in Lisbon as they look to reach the last four for a fifth year in a row.

An early chance for Benfica here as they win a free kick in a very good position after Kimmich was penalised for a foul on Raul. It is a harsh one from the ref, and further punishment could be coming for the visitors...

It is Eliseu who tries to drive one towards goal, but his low strike takes a deflection off Kimmich in the wall that takes it behind for a corner.

It has been a solid enough start from the home side, who were already a goal down at this stage of the first leg. They have seen a decent amount of the ball so far, and a lot of the opening five minutes has been played in the Bayern half.

SAVE! Bayern win a corner after good work from Muller to keep the ball in play, and Alonso's delivery is met by Martinez. The header lacks any power, though, and it is a routine save for Ederson to make.

Bayern's threat is beginning to grow now. They have Benfica on the back foot and look dangerous when they come forward. An early away goal for the visitors here would really dampen the atmosphere.

Bayern have now taken control of this game as we expected they might following a decent start from the home side. They have enjoyed 70% of possession in the opening 10 minutes or so, and Benfica are struggling to get a kick right now.

It is hard for Rui Vitoria to know what to do in this scenario. Benfica have very little chance of actually competing with Bayern when it comes to possession of the ball, but they also need to rely on more than just counter-attacks as the onus is on them to get goals.

Alaba gets down the left flank and plays a low ball into the middle, but it is easy for Ederson to gather. For all Bayern's possession, the Benfica keeper hasn't been tested yet.

Another smart move forward from Bayern as Alonso pings a beauty of a diagonal ball down the right flank for Costa. He slides a pass inside for the underlapping Lahm, but his low cross is cut out.

CLOSE! Almost the opening goal from the visitors as again Alonso spreads a pass out to the right, this time for Lahm. His delivery is better on this occasion and Muller gets his foot to it, but he hooks it narrowly wide.

Another shooting opportunity goes the way of Bayern as Alaba collects the ball around 25 yards from goal, but he won't want to see his effort again. He fires it well off target and the ball ends up closer to the corner flag.

CHANCE! Bayern's threat is beginning to grow here, and they are all coming down the right flank. This time Lahm is forced to roll it back for Thiago, who lifts a cross into the box. Vidal beats the offside trap and gets his head to it, but it lacks the power to really trouble the keeper.

It has been complete dominance from Bayern so far, and they are simply doing the same thing over and over. Alonso gets the ball, pings it out wide right and a cross arrives in the middle. Benfica have dealt with the last bit of it well enough, but could do with closing down Alonso more as he is dictating things here.

Lindelof is called upon to head another cross from the right away, and with all these deliveries arriving in the area Lewandowski will be watching on enviously from the sidelines.

Oh my word, where has that come from?! Benfica take the lead out of nothing to stun Bayern and level things on aggregate. Raul Jimenez gets the goal, but Eliseu deserves a lot of credit for floating a perfect cross into the striker. He meets it on the run between two Bayern defenders, beating Neuer to the ball and nodding it bravely into an empty net. Neuer really should have done better coming off his line, but take nothing away from the cross and the bravery of Raul.

Neuer went to punch that behind the three players who were competing for the ball in the middle, when he really should have just taken everyone out in front of him. We're used to praising the German keeper, but that will go down as a mistake.

CHANCE! A huge chance for Benfica to get a second! Salvio makes his way down the right and manages to squeeze a low cross into the middle despite slipping while delivering it. The ball eludes two Bayern defenders to reach Raul in space, but he can only poke his finish straight at Neuer when he probably should have scored.

Ederson is called upon to make another save, but once again it is merely a case of collecting the ball in routine fashion. A cross was met by Vidal in the middle, but his header looped up and was collected by the Benfica keeper underneath his own crossbar.

ALmost a chance for Bayern as a ball over the top finds Lahm of all people in the box. He chests it down well enough, but Ederson is quickly off his line and bravely dives to smother the ball before Lahm can have another touch.

UPDATE: There has been a big goal in Madrid, where Atletico are facing Barcelona in the other quarter-final. Antoine Griezmann has given his side the lead against the defending champions which, as things stand, would send Atletico through.

Bayern get the equaliser on the night, and crucially the away goal they were after. It is Vidal again, and it is a beauty of a finish from the midfielder. Lahm's cross from the right was met by Ederson, but he can only punch the ball as far as Vidal on the edge of the box. It may be an open goal for the Chilean, but it is still not an easy finish as he connects sweetly with a first-time half-volley to thump it home.

That changes things completely for Benfica, whose euphoria at that opening goal did not last long. They now need to score three tonight in order to go through.

The one positive for Benfica from this first is that they have looked capable of scoring when they have made it into the final third so far. However, those occasions have been few and far between, and they will need to show more attacking intent in the second half if they are to get back into this tie.

SHOT! Another opening for Vidal as he beats the offside trap to latch on to a pass over the top before taking it down well and going for goal. It is a difficult one, though, and he blazes it well off target.

There will be one added minute at the end of this first half.

The first half comes to an end at the Estadio da Luz, and we're level on the night despite a dominant display from Bayern Munich so far. Benfica stunned the visitors by taking the lead, but Bayern got a crucial away goal back to regain their lead on aggregate and leave the hosts needing three goals on the night now.

The opener came shortly before the half-hour mark when Benfica scored with virtually their first attack of the game. Eliseu's delivery into the middle was inch-perfect for Raul Jimenez, who beat two defenders to the ball to nod it past an onrushing Neuer. Neuer himself has to take some of the blame having got nowhere near the ball when coming out, when he should have simply clattered into everyone in front of him to collect the ball.

Bayern had struggled to create much despite all of their possession, but they got the all-important away goal 11 minutes after falling behind. Vidal, who opened the scoring in the first leg, was the man who got the goal once again, and this time it was a cracking finish. Ederson could only punch the ball as far as the midfielder on the edge of the box, who lashed a first-time half-volley into the empty net.

Aside from the goals, the best chance of the match has actually fallen to Benfica despite all of Bayern's dominance. Just three minutes after taking the lead, the Eagles almost grabbed a second when Silvio's low cross from the right found its way all the way through to Raul Jimenez. He controlled the ball, but was immediately under pressure and could only poke his finish straight at Neuer.

The vast majority of Benfica's attacks have come down the right flank, which has clearly been earmarked as a weak point by Bayern. They have been relentless in their pressure down that side of the field, although their chances via that route had been limited until the goal. Muller hooked one wide of the post with one effort, while Vidal had another weak header from a good position.

KICKOFF: Benfica get us back underway for the second half with a mountain to climb. They need two more goals without reply to qualify for the semi-finals.

This half has quickly fallen into the same pattern as the first, with Bayern dominating possession and knocking it about at their own pace. There is no onus on them to do any attacking in this game now, but you'd still fancy them to create a few more chances here.

Benfica will need to start throwing caution to the wind sooner rather than later in this match. They are understandably cautious of being hit on the break by Bayern, but it may take them a while to get two goals against this side so they don't have any time to waste.

Well, if it wasn't over before, it surely is now. Bayern get a second away goal to move into a 3-1 aggregate lead, and the defending from Benfica is very questionable. Alonso floats a corner into the middle and Martinez is unmarked to rise up and nod it back into a dangerous area. Muller also has far too much space and simply has to poke it in from close range.

CHANCE! A chance for Bayern to add a third as they hit Benfica on the break, with Alonso again acting as the orchestrator. It eventually falls to Costa in space on the left flank, but his first touch shows too much of it to Ederson, who comes out to make a brave stop at the winger's feet.

SHOT! Ribery is the latest to go for goal for the visitors, who are free to play without any pressure now. The French winger let's fly from range, but his effort goes a couple of yards too high.

BENFICA SUB: The hosts make their first change of the evening as Pizzi makes way to be replaced by Goncalo Guedes.

OFF THE POST! The visitors are inches away from another goal as Costa again comes forward down the left channel and drives a low strike towards the bottom corner. It beats the keeper, but hits the foot of the post and bounces away to safety.

SAVE! Neuer has had very little to do tonight, but he is called into action here to turn Almeida's powerful strike over the top. It was a good strike from the Benfica man, but was routine for Neuer.

Another chance for Benfica here as Vidal gives away a free kick in a very promising position for the hosts...

...Goncalo Guedes goes for goal, but he fires it a long way over the crossbar.

This game has got quite open since that second Bayern goal, with Benfica still looking to attacking at every opportunity and Bayern beginning to enjoy themselves a little going forward too.

DISALLOWED GOAL! Bayern have the ball in the bal of the net, but the linesman's flag is raised against Alaba. The full-back drove a low cross into the middle that Muller tapped in, but he initially received the ball in an offside position.

BENFICA SUB: Another change from the home side sees Salvio replaced by Talisca.

Costa whips a cross into the middle, but Ederson does well to leap out and hold on to the ball. Good goalkeeping there.

YELLOW CARD! Carcela-Gonzalez becomes the first name in the book tonight for a kick on Costa from behind.

CLOSE! Almost a shocker for Ederson to gift Bayern another! It is a good move from the visitors again as Muller collects a lofted through-ball over the top before cutting back and laying it off to Vidal. He tries to place his finish in from 20 yards and, although it lacks a bit of power, it still manages to squirm through the grasp of Ederson before creeping just wide.

YELLOW CARD! Martinez is a lucky, lucky boy here. He slides in to bring down Guedes right on the edge of the box when the Benfica man was clean through on goal, bringing his man down. The hosts want a red card and they have a strong argument, but the referee settles for a yellow.

Now then! Benfica pull a goal back as Talisca curls the free kick over the wall and past the despairing dive of Neuer to give the home side a glimmer of hope. That hope would be even greater had Martinez been sent off there, though.

A reminder that Benfica do still need two goals to progress from this tie due to Bayern's away goals. That free kick has given them just a slither of hope, but it is still a long way back for the home side.

Benfica just don't look as though they are going to see enough of the ball to even threaten for the two goals they need. Having said that, they already have those two goals out of nothing so far tonight, so don't rule anything out just yet!

A couple of half-chances in quick succession for Bayern as first they make the most of Benfica's strange defending from set pieces once again to send Muller in, but the ball doesn't drop for him. Moments later it does almost fall for Lahm, but he scuffs his shot.

BAYERN SUB: Bayern make their first change of the evening as Robert Lewandowski is given a run-out in place of Muller.

CLOSE! Benfica have another free kick in a good position, and it is another fine effort from Talisca. Neuer predicts he will go over the wall again, but Talisca takes him be surprise and goes for the goalkeeper's side, putting it just past the post.

UPDATE: It looks like Barcelona are on their way out of the Champions League! Griezmann has scored his second of the night in Madrid to give Atletico a 2-0 lead on the night. Barca now need one goal just to force extra time.

BENFICA SUB: The hosts make their third and final change of the night as Luka Jovic comes on for Eliseu.

CHANCE! Big chance for Lewandowski to get in on the act as he races through on goal, but he tries to open his body and can only put a tame finish straight at the keeper.

BAYERN SUB: The hosts make another change late on as Juan Bernat replaces Alonso.

There will be three minutes of added time at the end of this match.

YELLOW CARD! Almeida goes into the book for a late challenge on Ribery.

CHANCE! A late chance for Luka as he is found in plenty of space inside the penalty area, but his shot is straight at Neuer, who holds on to it well.

Bayern confirm their place in the semi-finals of the Champions League for a fifth straight year, then, and in truth they had this tie wrapped up from the moment their second goal went in on the night. It is a 3-2 aggregate triumph in the end, although tonight's 2-2 draw means that it is now seven straight Champions League away knockout games that Bayern have failed to win. With Barcelona now out of the competition though, the Germans will be many people's favourites to win the whole thing.

It was actually Benfica who took a shock lead on the night when Raul Jimenez nodded home against the run of play, but that lead lasted just 11 minutes before Vidal blasted home an equaliser. Muller then put his side ahead on the night to kill off the tie seven minutes into the second half, and while Talisca gave his side the slightest glimmer of hope with a free kick in the 76th minute, Bayern were able to see out the remainder of the match fairly comfortably.

That is all we have time for this evening! Thank you very much for joining Sports Mole for tonight's contest as Bayern book their place in the Champions League semi-finals courtesy of a 2-2 draw against Benfica in Lisbon. I will leave you with our match report, and be sure to stick around for reaction too. Our attention turns to the Europa League tomorrow night, so be sure to check back in with us for that! From me, though, it is goodbye for now!