According to Marca, current Levante coach Luis Castro led Benfica's youth team to two victories over Barcelona in the UEFA Youth League.

Some victories can make a person famous overnight. That Youth League campaign helped Luis Castro take a crucial step towards professional football. Benfica's youth team, then coached by the current Levante manager, defeated Barcelona twice in that "mini Champions League."

That was in the 2021-2022 season, when the Portuguese team eventually won the trophy, beating Red Bull Salzburg 6-0 in the final to win the eighth edition of the competition.

Benfica was drawn in Group E with Barcelona, Bayern Munich, and Dynamo Kyiv. After the group stage, Benfica finished first with 15 points, with a record of 5 wins and 1 loss, two of which were against Barcelona.

In the group stage, Benfica hosted Barcelona, led by Fermín López, Casadó, and Akhomach, and won 4-1. In the second match, they defeated Barcelona 3-0 again.

That season, after winning the European championship, Benfica also won the U20 Intercontinental Cup, defeating Uruguay's Peñarol in the final with a goal from Luís Semedo.

In his coaching career to date, the current Levante coach has faced Barcelona three times. The most recent was in the 25th round of last season, when the Valencia team lost 0-3 at Camp Nou.

AF's PC site is now live! Browse full news, comments, match details and stats on your computer. Visit: www.allfootballapp.com