Red Bull Bragantino have made a flying start to the Serie A season in Brazil and will be looking to keep their title push on track when they face Bahia in a clash of the franchise clubs.
Bragantino were languishing in Serie B when Red Bull took over in the wake of administration in 2019 and their backing has helped the club become challengers again.
They finished sixth in both 2021 and 2023 but had a disappointing time of it last term by languishing in 16th place. Head coach Fernando Seabra has them purring again now though and Bragantino are in the thick of the title fight.
They've won seven of their 12 games so far, losing just twice, and will be hoping to bank another three points when Bahia come calling.
Bahia are another club who have benefitted from overseas ownership, with the City Group taking them on as part of their stable two years ago.
They were in the second tier as recently as 2022 but have been on an upward curve since then and a win in this game would leave them just two points behind Bragantino.
How the bookies view it: Red Bull have wings
Red Bull Bragantino are 21/2o favourites for this one at BoyleSports with home advantage. Bahia are 13/5 outsiders and the draw pays 2/1.
Recent head to head: Nothing in it
These sides have faced off just six times since 2021 and it's honours evens, with two wins apiece and two draws. Home advantage was key last season as Red Bull Bragantino won 2-1 in Sao Paulo after losing 1-0 on the road in Bahia.
Players to watch: Pitta's tasty
Striker Isidro Pitta has an impressive strike rate this season, scoring four goals in just nine appearances for Bragantino. He has netted three times in his last four games and looks good 8/5 at Bet365 for anytime scorer.
Willian Jose scored a double for Bahia last time out as they claimed a 2-1 win over Sao Paulo. One of those goals was a penalty so he looks a little overpriced at 13/5 for another strike here.
Probable line-ups
Bragantino have a long injury list at the moment with Pedro Henrique, Douglas Mendes, Agustín Sant'Anna, Henry Mosquera, Lucao and Fernando Santos likely to miss out again. Bahia also have injury issues, with Iago Borduchi, Erick, Rezende and Kandu set to sit this one out.
Red Bull Bragantino: Cleiton, P Henrique, J Capixaba, Guilherme, Hurtad, Gabriel, E Ramires, E Sasha, Jhon, Vinicinho, Pitta.
Bahia: M Felipe, Gilberto, R Mingo, Duarte, Juba, Lucas, E Ribeiro, Alexandre, Ademir, W Jose, E Pulga.
Anything else catch the eye?
Bragantino have won seven of their last nine games while Bahia have lost five of their last seven so the home win looks good value at odds-against. You can boost the price to 7/4 by combining a Bragantino victory with over 1.5 goals but that's a little risky given they've won by a 1-0 scoreline in four of their home games this term.
The games between these sides produced heaps of corners last season, with 13 in Bahia and a further 15 in the Sao Paulo return. Betfred price over 10.5 corners at evens for this one and that looks good value based on those stats from last term.
GambleAware