Greek striker Vangelis Pavlidis has popped up with another vital UEFA Champions League performance as he bagged the winning goal against AS Monaco to strengthen Benfica’s chances of qualifying to the Round of 16.
Pavlidis’ lone strike guided the Lisbon side to a 0-1 victory away on Thursday morning (AEDT) in the opening leg of their knockout phase play-offs tie.
The star forward’s goal came shortly after the break in the 48th minute when he was played through by right back Tomas Araujo, meeting the ball inside the box on the right side before expertly chipping it over goalkeeper Radoslaw Majecki from a tight angle.
It was the third Champions League game in a row where Pavlidis has scored, taking his tally up to six goals in the competition.
The strike also takes him to second for most Champions League goals scored by a Greek player in a single campaign, with Antonis Antoniadis the only person to have netted more (scoring ten times during the 1970-71 season when Panathinaikos made the Final).
Pavlidis has slowly built his way to a solid debut season for the Eagles in terms of goals and assists, with him currently at 15 goals scored and eight assists from his 35 appearances so far.
It is a promising start to his Benfica career after they paid 18 million euros for him this season, and the Greek star will now have his sights set on making it to the Round of 16 with his team.
The second leg fixtures play out next week with Benfica hosting Monaco in Lisbon on Wednesday morning.
