Benfica win a corner after Grimaldo's cross is turned behind...
90'
Five minutes of stoppage time...
89'
The home fans continue to chant as we approach the final few minutes, and it has been an excellent night for Zenit. Benfica are now minutes away from losing back-to-back games in Group G.
86'
De Tomas' goal is undoubtedly the best of the match, but it should be too late for Benfica. Like Karavaev did for Zenit, he made an immediate impact, but the away fans barely celebrated the goal due to the scoreline.
85'
Raúl de Tomás has scored a goal for Benfica!
WHAT A GOAAAALLLLLL! ZENIT 3-1 BENFICA - TAKE A BOW DE TOMAS!!!! Zenit give the ball away cheaply, but the substitute is still a good 25 yards away from goal. He takes one touch before drilling a shot towards goal and Lunev fails to keep it out despite getting a hand to the effort.
81'
Raúl de Tomás enters the game and replaces H. Seferović.
A. Erokhin enters the game and replaces S. Azmoun.
A night to forget for Seferovic and on comes De Tomas for the final 10 minutes of action.
Azmoun receives a massive round of applause as he is replaced by Erokhin. The striker just managed to get his goal before being subbed, and it could have been two if the flag had not gone up for offside.
78'
S. Azmoun has scored a goal for Zenit! Assist by M. Ozdoev.
Ozdoev gets his second assist of the night, and he has been one of Zenit's best players tonight. He was so composed under pressure there, but he still found Azmoun with a brilliant pass.
GOALLLL ZENIT 3-0 BENFICA - Azmoun gets a deserved goal, and that is far too easy for the home side. Ozdoev was given too much time in the midfield, and he managed to find Azmoun with a ball over the top. The striker stayed onside and then rounded Vlachodimos before tapping into an empty net.
73'
That should be game over tonight unless Benfica can produce a miraculous fightback inside the next 16 minutes.
70'
Rúben Dias is unfortunate, scores an own goal!
GOAAALLLL ZENIT 2-0 BENFICA - The home fans go wild as Zenit double the lead at such a crucial time of the match. Substitute Karavaev had only been on the pitch for a matter of minutes, but he gets an assist as Dias scores an own goal. The winger made his way to the byline before firing a cross towards the back post, and Dias panicked before bundling the ball over the line.
Minute
Description
68'
V. Karavaev enters the game and replaces O. Shatov.
Shatov made a significant impact in the first half, but he has barely featured in the second half. Karavaev is now on in his place for the final 22 minutes of action.
64'
Smolnikov is really struggling to return to the bench, and he continues to limp around the pitch with two physios helping him along.
63'
Y. Osorio enters the game and replaces I. Smolnikov.
Zenit coach Semak has decided to not take any risks, and he sends on Osorio in a bid to secure this 1-0 lead.
60'
Carlos Vinícius enters the game and replaces Pizzi.
Caio Lucas enters the game and replaces L. Fejsa.
There is also a change in midfield as Fejsa returns to the bench and on comes Caio.
Pizzi's night is over as he is replaced by Vinícius.
56'
Smolnikov looks OK to continue for the rest of the match, but it could be time for both managers to make a substitution.
49'
Driussi called rank with the set-piece, but he fires the ball straight into the wall and Zenit settle for a throw-in.
48'
Taarabt flies into the back of Ozdoev and Zenit have a free-kick on the edge of the box...
46'
We are back underway at the Saint Petersburg Stadium!
45' +2
HALF-TIME - ZENIT 1-0 BENFICA.
45' +1
One minute of stoppage time...
45'
Zenit once again carve Benfica open down the right-wing and Azmoun finds space to try and head home a cross, but he leans back and can only find the stands.
44'
Y. Rakitskyi gets yellow.
Rakitskiy becomes the first man to be shown a yellow card after a poorly-timed tackle in midfield.
42'
In the other game in Group G, Lyon are beating RB Leipzig 1-0 away from home.
40'
Driussi now gets in on the act with a curling effort from the edge of the box, but the winger just cannot generate enough spin on his shot.
38'
Shatov manages to latch onto a cross inside the box, but his first touch is too heavy, and he concedes a goal kick. If he could have kept that in play, Benfica were in real trouble for a second.
35'
Benfica are enjoying a bit more possession in midfield, but they are not doing enough to find Seferovic. The former Real Sociedad man is looking isolated, and a change of tactics may be needed at the break.
33'
Both players have been waved back onto the field, but they will need to be monitored before half-time.
27'
Former Tottenham ace Taarabt pushes forward and forces a save out of Lunev in the Zenit goal, but there is not enough power on his shot to trouble him.
25'
While their goal came from the left side of the pitch, Zenit continue to attack down the right and Benfica may need to stick another defender on Shatov as he is finding far too much space near the touchline.
23'
Zenit deserve their lead as we reach the halfway point of the first half. Benfica tried to be too crafty at the back, and they need to learn their lessons with Dzyuba always stalking their defenders inside the box.
21'
A. Dzyuba has scored a goal for Zenit! Assist by M. Ozdoev.
GOAAALLLLL ZENIT 1-0 BENFICA - The visitors try to play out of the back and are caught dawdling on the edge of the box. A strong tackle from Ozdoev on Fejsa allows Dzyuba to pick up possession and the Russia international is on hand to slot the ball home.
Ozdoev deserves plenty of credit for that tackle as he needed to make sure he did not give away a free-kick. His effort on Fejsa was perfectly timed, and he could not have played Dzyuba into a better position.
19'
Pizzi has had a quiet night so far, but he finally bursts into life on the left-wing. The midfielder cuts onto his right foot and picks his spot, but he shoots straight at Lunev.
16'
After a vibrant start, we now have a bit of a stalemate at the Saint Petersburg Stadium.
13'
Zenit look dangerous down the right ring, with Smolnikov and Shatov both getting forward. However, both are struggling to find Dzyuba with their crosses in the early stages.
11'
Benfica have nearly everyone behind the ball apart from Seferovic, and that is allowing them to stop the threat from midfield.
9'
Both sides now seem happy to slow the tempo down and it may suit Benfica more in the early stages.
7'
Benfica reach the edge of the Zenit box but waste the chance as Taarabt drags a left-footed shot past the post.
5'
We are only five minutes into this match, and both sides have already had a chance each. Hopefully a sign of things to come!
4'
Benfica try to respond straight away from a corner, but Seferovic can only head past the far post. He met Pizzi's cross with power, but he needed to be a little cuter with his header.
1'
We are underway in Russia! Zenit wearing blue, Benfica in their traditional red and white strip.
Good evening and welcome to tonight's live coverage of the Group G match between Zenit and Benfica in the Champions League. Zenit drew their first game 1-1 against Lyon, while their Portuguese rivals lost 2-1 to German outfit RB Leipzig.
A cracking game is in prospect at the Saint Petersburg Stadium, with both sides losing just one of their last five matches. Zenit come into the contest on the back of a defeat to Lokomotiv Moscow, while Benfica beat Vitoria Setubal 1-0.
Zenit have won their last four group games at home in the Champions League, but they will need to be at their best to get past Benfica tonight.
ZENIT (4-3-1-2): Andrey Lunev; Igor Smolnikov, Yaroslav Rakitskiy, Branislav Ivanovic (C), Douglas Santos; Oleg Shatov, Wilmar Barrios, Magomed Ozdoev; Sebastian Driussi, Sardar Azmoun, Artem Dzyuba.
SUBS: Yordan Osorio, Aleksey Sutormin, Vyacheslav Karavaev, Robert Mak, Yuri Zhirkov, Aleksandr Erokhin, Mikhail Kerzhakov.
BENFICA (4-2-3-1): Odisseas Vlachodimos; Tomas Tavares, Ruden Dias, Jardel, Alejandro Grimaldo; Lubomir Fejsa, Gabriel Pires; Pizzi, Adel Taarabt, Rafa; Haris Seferovic.
SUBS: Ivan Zlobin, Nuno Tavares, Caio, Gedson Fernandes, Carlos Vinicius, Raul de Tomas, Ferro.
The two teams are now on the field of play, and we are just waiting for the magic of the Champions League anthem.
Lyon beat RB Leipzig 2-0 in the other match in the group, and this one could go down to the wire. Bring it on!
That is all for tonight folks, thanks for joining us. Goodbye!
Zenit will fancy their chances of causing a few upsets this season, with Russia such a difficult place to travel to. Dzyuba would cause problems for any defence, and the Russian giants have made a superb start to this season's Champions League campaign. Benfica would have been confident of getting out of the group, but they have now lost both their games in the competition.
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