 On 17 June 2009, Jesus replaced Quique Flores at the helm of S.L.Benfica.In his first year he led Benfica to the first division title after a five-year wait, with only two league defeats and 78 goals scored, also reaching the quarter-finals in the Europa League, losing to Liverpool on a 3–5 aggregate score (this would be the last match Benfica would lose in a run that lasted 27 games); he quickly implemented a 4–1–3–2 formation which resulted in highly attractive football.