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Mexican striker Santiago Giménez gets his first taste of O Clássico on Sunday, September 20, when FC Porto host Benfica at the Estádio do Dragão in Liga Portugal. The 25-year-old joined Porto on loan from AC Milan on September 1 and opened his account for the club last weekend, scoring from the penalty spot in a 4-1 away win over Casa Pia.
How to Watch
Match: FC Porto vs SL Benfica
Competition: Liga Portugal
Date: Sunday, September 20, 2026
Kickoff: 3:30 PM ET | 2:30 PM CT | 12:30 PM PT
TV Channel: beIN Sports
Online Live Stream: beIN SPORTS CONNECT, Fubo, Sling, Fanatiz
In the United States, beIN Sports carries the match live, with streaming available through beIN SPORTS CONNECT, Fubo, Sling and Fanatiz.
Watch on Fubo | Start Free Trial
Santiago Giménez’s Last Week
Porto played no competitive matches between September 13 and September 19, so Giménez went into clássico week without midweek minutes. His most recent outing came on September 12, when he entered in the 62nd minute for André Silva at Casa Pia, won a penalty and converted it himself for Porto’s fourth goal in a 4-1 win. It was his first goal for the club.
The Mexican striker made his Porto debut the previous weekend against Moreirense and came close to scoring, then made his Champions League debut for Porto on September 8, entering in the 72nd minute for André Silva and playing the final 20 minutes of a 2-0 home loss to Manchester City.
Porto hold an option to buy Giménez from Milan next summer that could become an obligation under undisclosed conditions.
Brief Match Preview
First meets second in Portugal, with only two points separating the sides after six rounds. Porto have won all six league matches and conceded just two goals in the top flight, while Benfica sit on 16 points after five wins and an opening day draw. Benfica have scored 21 goals, five more than any other side in the division, and carry a 55-match unbeaten run in the league. A seventh straight league win would match Porto’s seven-game winning start from last season’s title campaign, although Benfica avoided defeat on their last two league visits to the Dragão.
Benfica arrive in strong form after opening their Europa League campaign with a 2-0 win at AC Milan in midweek, while Porto’s only recent defeat was a 2-0 home loss to Manchester City in the Champions League.
Porto will be without Nehuén Pérez, who has a thigh injury, while João Costa and Zaidu Sanusi remain in treatment and Victor Froholdt and Oskar Pietuszewski are in conditioned training. Jan Bednarek and Jakub Kiwior are the expected starting center backs. For Benfica, Alexander Bah is back in full training and in contention at right back, while Gianluca Prestianni and Rafa Silva could return to the side. Vangelis Pavlidis is expected to lead the Benfica attack after scoring seven league goals.
Giménez came off the bench to score his first Porto goal last time out, but André Silva looks the likely candidate to lead the line again, so the Mexican may once more be asked to make an impact as a substitute in the biggest match of his young Porto career.
A goal in O Clássico would announce Giménez’s arrival in Portugal. Even a late cameo offers him a stage few Mexican strikers have enjoyed.
