Sunderland ended their pre-season camp in Portugal with a 2-0 defeat to champions Benfica, with Ahmed Al-Muhammadi playing his first 90 minutes for the Black Cats. Goals from Oscar Cardozo and Carlos Martins downed Steve Bruce's side in Portugal as the visitors had a number of key players missing. Egypt winger Al-Muhammadi started on the right flank in Sunderland's 4-5-1 formation as new full-back Marcos Angeleri also played the first 45 minutes. Sunderland open their Premier League campaign against Birmingham on August 14th at the Stadium of Light.