Benfica lose 2-1 at St. Gallen, Besiktas beat Midtjylland 1-0 in Europa League qualifiers

The evening smiled on Istanbul, but much less on St. Gallen. In their first official outing of the 2026-2027 season, Besiktas got the job done in front of their home crowd by dominating Midtjylland (1-0), while Benfica fell in Switzerland (2-1).

Benfica Stumble in Switzerland

Marco Silva certainly could not have imagined such a start. For his first official match on the Lisbon bench, the successor to José Mourinho—who left for Real Madrid this summer—saw his team give way on the pitch of St. Gallen despite a squad rich in key players.

After a balanced start, the Swiss turned the match around with a true flash of brilliance from Aliou Baldé. Positioned wide on the left side of the box, the former Nice player unleashed a magnificent curling shot that nestled under the crossbar of Anatoliy Trubin (37th).

Well set up by Vangelis Pavlidis, the experienced Rafa Silva brought the two teams level just before the break (44th). But after the restart, St. Gallen gradually took control until they found the breakthrough ten minutes from time. Alone at the far post from a free kick, Tom Gaal offered a precious victory to the Swiss (80th), now forcing Benfica to overturn the two-legged tie in front of their home crowd.

Besiktas Do the Bare Minimum

While Benfica stumbled, Besiktas avoided a misstep. With a numerical advantage from the 15th minute, the Turks quickly took the lead thanks to Orkun Kökçü (26th), who arrived from Lisbon last season.

Facing a Danish side packed in their own half, the Istanbul team largely controlled the proceedings and created several chances to extend their lead, without ever managing to kill off the suspense. This lack of clinical finishing still keeps Midtjylland alive ahead of the return leg, but Besiktas will nonetheless approach their trip to Denmark (Thursday, July 30 at 9 PM) with an advantage and the firm intention of securing their ticket to the third preliminary round.