Hearts got a brutal reminder of Benfica’s attacking power earlier this season. Now it’s Celtic’s turn to visit Lisbon, and Martin O’Neill has plenty to worry about before Thursday night’s Europa League meeting.

Sunday’s 2-0 win at Motherwell gave Celtic a much-needed clean sheet, although Cameron Carter-Vickers remains an injury concern and Dane Murray could be asked to start another European match.

A look through Benfica’s results shows just how much work Celtic’s defence could have on its hands.

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Benfica’s home scoring record should worry Celtic

Benfica have scored 23 goals in seven competitive home games this season, winning six and drawing one. That’s an average of 3.29 goals every time they play at the Estádio da Luz.

And here’s the number that should concern O’Neill. Not a single visiting team has managed to keep Benfica below two goals.

The Portuguese club’s results this season include a 5-0 win over St Gallen, a 3-1 victory against AGF Aarhus and another three-goal performance against Gil Vicente.

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Even their only home draw, a 2-2 result against Académico Viseu, continued that scoring run.

It’s not just in Lisbon, either. Marco Silva’s team have hit 45 goals in 15 competitive matches and have yet to draw a blank.

Hearts know all about Benfica’s scoring power after their 6-1 hammering in August’s Europa League qualifiers. The Edinburgh side conceded after just three minutes and were 3-0 down at the break. Another three goals followed in the second half.

Benfica also scored five against St Gallen and three against Aarhus in their other European home qualifiers, giving them 14 goals from those three matches.

All three opponents came through the qualifying rounds, but Silva’s side have since gone to AC Milan and won 2-0 in the Europa League league phase.

The home results aren’t entirely bad news for Celtic. Five of Benfica’s seven visitors have managed to score, with St Gallen and Vitória Guimarães the only sides they have kept out.

Martin O’Neill has a big Celtic defensive decision to make

Cameron Carter-Vickers’ injury has left O’Neill short of his usual options, with Murray partnering Liam Scales at Fir Park on Sunday. Scales has already praised Murray’s ability, insisting that his lack of senior appearances doesn’t show when they’re playing together.

The Irish defender also wants Celtic to repeat their 3-1 win over Feyenoord last season, a result that ended a 15-match wait for a European away victory.

Celtic conceded three against Ferencvaros at Parkhead in their opening Europa League fixture, but were much better organised against Motherwell.

O’Neill must now decide whether Murray keeps his place or Auston Trusty’s European experience earns him a recall. Celtic have lost all four previous competitive visits to Benfica, conceding nine goals and scoring just once.

Hearts were already staring at a heavy defeat before half-time in August. O’Neill will be desperate to avoid Celtic suffering the same fate on Thursday.