Sporting Braga vs Servette Match Analysis & Prediction


08/08/2024 10:30 pm


Portuguese outfit Sporting Braga will play host to Swiss side Servette at Estadio Municipal de Braga for the first leg of their Europa League third qualifying round tie on Thursday night.
Sporting Braga secured safe passage through to the third qualifying round after beating Israeli side Maccabi Petah Tikva 7-0 on aggregate in the previous round.
After two second-half goals secured a 2-0 first-leg win on home soil, Braga took control of the tie in emphatic style, scoring three goals in the opening 45 minutes of the second leg last Thursday before an own goal and a late penalty from new signing Amine El Ouazzani in the second half rubbed salt into the wounds of MPT.
Under the tutelage of new manager Daniel Sousa, who replaced Artur Jorge in May, Braga are seeking to avoid a repeat of last season’s 6-5 aggregate defeat to Qarabag FK in the third qualifying round of the Europa League.
Including qualifiers, Braga are competing in the Europa League for the eighth successive season, while their best result in the competition came back in 2010-11 when they reached the final, losing to fellow Portuguese side FC Porto.
After competing in the Europa League group stage for the first time in their history last season, Servette are looking to qualify for the same competition this term after finishing third in the 2023-24 Swiss Super League.
Thomas Haberli’s side won two of their three friendly matches before kick-starting the new league campaign with three successive victories over Luzern, defending champions Young Boys and Yverdon Sport, scoring eight goals in the process.
However, Servette suffered their first competitive defeat of the new season last Saturday when they lost 3-1 away to Lugano. Although Dereck Kutesa opened the scoring in the 61st minute, three goals in the space of just 11 minutes ultimately sealed victory for Lugano.
Servette, who currently sit second in the table and level on points with leaders Lugano, are now gearing up for three tricky matches, with a league encounter at home to Basel sandwiched between their two-legged tie against Braga.
Excluding friendlies, Servette travel to Portugal on Thursday having only won three of their last 10 away matches across all competitions, keeping just two clean sheets in the process.
Sporting Braga vs. Servette Head to head
This will be the first meeting between these two teams.
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Sporting Braga Team News
As many as eight new players have arrived at Braga so far this summer, including attackers El Ouazzani and Roberto Fernandez who could be handed starts in the final third with Bruma on Thursday.
Rodrigo Zalazar has bagged two goals and two assists in just two matches so far this season and is expected to continue in midfield alongside Ricardo Horta and either Joao Moutinho or Godoy.
Sporting Braga's Last 5 Matches
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10/07/2024Sporting Braga0Moreirense2Club Friendlies
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14/07/2024Sporting Braga2Anderlecht1Club Friendlies
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18/07/2024Sporting Braga2Rayo Vallecano2Club Friendlies
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25/07/2024Sporting Braga2Maccabi Petah Tikva0Europa League
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01/08/2024Maccabi Petah Tikva0Sporting Braga5Europa League
Servette Team News
Steve Rouiller is serving a domestic suspension, but he is available to return on Thursday and could replace Anthony Baron to partner Yoan Severin in central defence.
Summer signings Julian von Moos and Usman Simbakoli both made substitute outings last time out and are in contention to make their first start for Servette on Thursday.
Servette's Last 5 Matches
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13/07/2024Servette1Etoile Carouge2Club Friendlies
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21/07/2024Luzern1Servette2Super League
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24/07/2024Servette3Young Boys1Super League
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28/07/2024Servette3Yverdon Sport2Super League
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03/08/2024Lugano3Servette1Super League
Sporting Braga vs. Servette: Odds and Predictions
Main Prediction
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