1980–81 S.L. Benfica season the club. Benfica's league campaign started with seven consecutive wins, before a first loss with Porto in the Clássico. A few days later, Benfica wins their first Supertaça de Portugal. In the Cup Winners' Cup, Benfica eliminated Altay, Dinamo Zagreb and Malmö in the first three rounds. In late November, Benfica draws with Sporting and three weeks later, with Vitória de Setúbal, lapping the first half in first place with a three-point lead. In the following weeks, Benfica won three more matches before losing another point in a draw with Penafiel, which cut his lead to two points. They reacted
1984–85 S.L. Benfica season won all league matches in April. In the Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira, a one-nil win for both Benfica and Porto forced a replay of the competition. In early May, John Mortimore was confirmed as new manager, with Csernai still in charge for another month. Before the end of May, Benfica lost away in the first leg of the Supertaça to Porto, but won the Derby de Lisboa with Sporting by 3–1, reducing the distance between them. In June, Benfica lost again in the Supertaça, losing the competition and finished the league in third place, 12 points behind Porto and five