Benfica had to settle for second place in Group C in the Champions League after being beaten by Atletico Madrid at Estadio da Luz in their final fixture.

The Portuguese side only needed a draw to go through as group winners, but Saul Niguez and Luciano Vietto put the La Liga club ahead before Kostas Mitroglou pulled one back for the hosts late on.

Diego Simeone's side will be seeded when the draw for the last 16 takes place on Monday, while Benfica will face one of the winners from the other seven groups.

Sports Mole rates the individual performances of the players involved in Atletico's 2-1 win.

Goal

Julio Cesar: Cesar came under pressure throughout against a strong Atletico side, and could have done little to prevent the opening goal, but should have done better to stop Luciano Vietto beating him at the near post in the second half. (5/10)

Defence

Lisandro Lopez: Lopez had plenty to do at the back, and was often left exposed by his defensive teammates getting forward, but he made a number of clearances to prevent Benfica slipping to a heavier defeat. (7/10)

Eliseu: Eliseu did not get forward as often as he usually does, with Benfica struggling to get out of their own half at times, but he made some vital blocks at the back. (7/10)

Jardel: Jardel struggled at times, trying too hard to help out in midfield while lacking the pace needed to get back in time, leaving his colleagues exposed. (4/10)

Andre Almeida: Almeida was beaten in the air a couple of times while defending set pieces, and like Jardel found himself out of position on several occasions. (5/10)

Midfield

Ljubomir Fejsa: Fejsa was fairly anonymous in the first half, only starting to make an impact in the second half. He managed to slow Atletico on the right flank, but did get booked late on. (5/10)

Nicolas Gaitan: Gaitan was praised for his performance in the reverse fixture, as Benfica beat Atletico 2-1, but the midfielder was unable to have the same impact tonight, showing flashes of brilliance in between mistimed passes and wayward shots. (6/10)

Goncalo Guedes: Guedes managed just one high finish in an otherwise uneventful first half in midfield, resulting in him being replaced after just 45 minutes. (4/10)

Pizzi: Pizzi struggled to link up with Gaitan and Jonas at times, but never stopped trying to get involved for the home side, and came close to setting up a goal several times. (7/10)7

Renato Sanches: The 18-year-old put in a performance beyond his years, inspiring the home side's strong finish with a series of blistering runs into the box and dangerous crosses, while winning a number of free kicks as the visitors struggled to contain him. (7/10)

Attack

Jonas: The striker is not fully fit, which resulted in him being subbed off early, but he proved a handful for the Atletico defence, showing his strength and footwork skills in the box, although he lacked regular service from the midfield. (7/10)

Substitutes

Kostas Mitroglou: The striker came on at half time and almost found the back of the net moments after the restart, before giving the home side some late hope with a brilliant finish in the final 20 minutes. It would have been interesting to see what happened if the Greek started. (8/10)

Mehdi Carcelo-Gonzalez: Replacing Gaitan for the final 15 minutes, Carcelo-Gonzalez did not have the biggest impact on the match, but did a reasonable job with the corners late on. (6/10)

Raul Jimenez: The striker came on for Jonas with just over an hour gone, and really stretched the tiring Atletico defenders in the final 10 minutes, but was ultimately unable to find the back of the net with a string of shots. (7/10)

Goal

Jan Oblak: The Atletico keeper faced just three on-target efforts all night, with them all coming in the final 30 minutes, and will be disappointed not to have kept a clean sheet, but a solid save in the final 10 minutes ultimately prevented Benfica from getting back on level terms. (7/10)

Defence

Diego Godin: The defender came close to opening the scoring with an offside header, but was clinical at the back, regularly breaking up attacking moves by the home side. (7/10)

Filipe Luis: Luis worked hard to limit the effectiveness of Gaitan and Jonas, frustrating the duo throughout, and proved a handful getting forward on the left flank. (7/10)

Stefan Savic: Savic put in a solid performance at the back, notably throwing himself in front of a powerful strike from Jonas just before half time, blocking the shot despite leaving himself wincing because of the blow. (7/10)

Juanfran: Juanfran had a freer role than his defensive colleagues, coming forward into the middle more often, but he always seemed to be able to get back in time to restrict Benfica on the counter-attack. (7/10)

Midfield

Koke: Koke was unspectacular, but helped get the ball out from the back several times, while helping defend in the final stages as Benfica pressed for the equaliser. (6/10)

Gabi: Gabi provided a few promising long balls forward for the visitors, and regained possession on numerous occasions in the middle. (6/10)

Saul Niguez: Niguez put in quite a shift for the La Liga side, scoring the opening goal with a clinical finish, while running at the Benfica box tirelessly throughout, attempting to extend their advantage further. (8/10)

Yannick Ferreira-Carrasco: The summer signing was kept pretty quiet in the opening 45 minutes, but showed his pace on the left in the second half to set up Vietto's goal. (7/10)

Attack

Antoine Griezmann: Although not scoring or getting an assist, Griezmann seemed to be involved every time Atletico made their way forward, although he appeared not to have brought his shooting boots with him, unleashing a few poor finishes. (7/10)

Luciano Vietto: Vietto drifted in and out of the match, but he was involved in both of the goals, providing the cutback for Niguez's opener before slicing the ball in from Ferreira-Carrasco's cross for the second. (8/10)

Substitutes

Fernando Torres: Replacing Vietto in the final 30 minutes, Torres had several chances to end his three-month goal drought, but the Spaniard's finishing was woeful. (4/10)

Oliver Torres: In a 15-minute stint Oliver Torres showed good pace getting forward, and created a couple of chances for the Spanish club. (7/10)

Jose Gimenez: The defender replaced Griezmann deep in stoppage time, and did not have much time to make an impact on the game, but he did have to face a couple of attacking moves from Benfica in the final seconds ultimately helping Atletico see out the win. (5/10)

Written by
Sian Cowper