Lisbon, Sep 17 (IANS): Two first-half strikes helped Zenit St. Petersberg of Russia beat Benfica of Portugal 2-0 in Lisbon's Estadio da Luz Stadium in their UEFA Champions League Group C opener.
Hulk scored in the fifth minute following a pass by Oleg Shatov and Axel Witsel scored in the 22nd with a header to round off the victory Tuesday, reports Xinhua.
Benfica goalkeeper Artur Moraes was expelled in the 18th minute after obstructing Danny on the break. Benfica never lost against a Russian club prior to this meeting. Zenit and Benfica met in the last 16 of the Champions League in 2011/12 when Benfica won on a 4-3 aggregate score.
Both teams entered the game full of confidence thanks to positive starts to their domestic seasons. In the group's other game, French side Monaco beat German club Bayer Leverkusen 1-0.