MArco Silva promised and is fulfilling it. Sudakov is being one of his biggest bets in this new season for Benfica. When he was presented as José Mourinho’s successor at Luz, the former Fulham coach made a point of highlighting his desire to get the best out of the players he had at his disposal, particularly the case of the Ukrainian international.
“Just look at the characteristics of my teams… From very early on, it’s a player profile that usually performs, it’s a player profile from whom we can usually get the best, and that’s what we’re going to try to do again with Sudakov. It’s obvious that the opportunity will be there. He’s a player I really believe in. We’re here to improve him individually and, collectively, get him to play at the level that a player with that talent has to play”, stated Marco Silva, on June 12, in the presentation as Benfica’s new coach.
From words, Marco Silva moved on to actions and it was soon realized, in the pre-season games, that Sudakov would play an important role in the Eagles’ offensive maneuver. With a system of three midfielders, the Ukrainian performs functions similar to a number 10, with his main responsibility being to link up with Pavlidis and the two wingers, also playing between the lines.
Despite the exhibitional ups and downs, Sudakov managed to convince Marco Silva and was always involved in Benfica’s first official games, being, alongside Samuel Dahl, the second player with the most minutes (450) – only Clément Lenglet has more (478).
Last Monday, against Casa Pia, the Ukrainian player revealed some uneasiness, evidenced by his desire to be able to participate more directly in the defeat in Rio Maior (7-0), and Marco Silva admitted that there is “some tension”, highlighting the player’s desire to be able to fulfill what is asked of him on the field.
“Sudakov has been trying a lot. I’m not going to hide it, because I said at that time (of the presentation) that in our squad he is a player who has very specific characteristics for what I want in that position. I understand that he still hasn’t had that eye-catching performance, he needs a goal, he needs assists, he needs, with the offensive flow we’ve been having, to be even more impactful in the game”, he stressed, before leaving a warning to the player.
“He has to believe even more than I do, I can’t be the one who believes in him more than he does. That’s very important and he understands that. He’s trying to do his best, at times things aren’t going so well, you can tell that he’s a player who’s playing with too much tension, and he shouldn’t do that. He has to enjoy the game a little bit, because he’s a player who works a lot, both with and without the ball”, explained the Eagles’ coach.
The alternatives, according to Marco Silva
For now, Sudakov seems to be solid in the eleven of this new Benfica and on Thursday he should play against Aarhus, in the 1st leg of the playoff for access to the Europa League. However, Marco Silva has also assumed that he has alternatives if he understands that the Ukrainian international is not delivering what he wants.
For the most advanced place in midfield, the names of Gianluca Prestianni and Rafa Silva are included. Even so, the Reds’ coach made a point of highlighting that “they are different profiles”.
What do Sudakov numbers say?
Although Benfica have already scored 22 goals in the first six games of 2026/27, Sudakov has so far only managed one assist, against Hearts, beating the corner that Tomás Araújo deflected into the goal.
In Rio Maior, for example, Sudakov was quite active, touching the ball 55 times and completing three successful dribbles. The Eagles’ number 10 also had an 87% pass accuracy rate, attempting three shots at goal, one of which was only blocked and saved by André Gomes, missing a clear scoring opportunity.
Sudakov also lost the ball 11 times and left in the 78th minute, with a rating of 7.2, according to the specialized platform Sofascore.
