The Primeira Liga returns after the international break with a Friday night clash between Braga and Benfica. Hosts Braga have looked out of sorts at home lately and Benfica will fancy their chances of coming out on top.
Braga earned a 2-1 victory at Portimonense in their Primeira Liga fixture prior to the international break. They raced to an early two goal lead through Francisco Moura and Yan Couto and were able to hold on for the win despite a second half own goal from David Carmo.
That was the first win in four matches across all competitions for Braga, who have looked out of sorts lately. Despite their recent struggles, they remain on course to finish in the European places, sitting fourth on the table, 13 points above Vitoria Guimaraes, who are just outside the top five.
Sporting Braga have been poor at the Estadio Municipal de Braga lately and are winless in their last two home matches. They were beaten 1-0 by Gil Vicente in their previous home fixture.
Benfica are currently on a nine-match unbeaten run across all competitions and overcame Dutch giants Ajax to reach the quarter-finals of the UEFA Champions League.
Sitting third on the table, Benfica are unlikely to catch Primeira Liga leaders Porto, who are looking almost unstoppable at the moment. However, with five points separating them from second place Sporting, a Champions League place is within their grasp.
Benfica travel to Braga with five wins from their last seven Primeira Liga fixtures, including a 2-1 victory over Estoril prior to the international break. Nelson Verissimo’s men have also won three of their last four away matches and beat Portimonense 2-1 in their previous fixture on the road.
How the bookies view it
Benfica have the advantage among the bookies at 21/17 with SBK while a victory for Braga is valued at 11/5 by bet365. Unibet is offering odds of 5/2 for a draw.
Recent head to head
Recent meetings between Braga and Benfica have been evenly split with both teams claiming three wins each. Benfica were rampant in the reverse fixture back in November, claiming a 6-1 victory with Darwin Nunes among the goals.
Players to watch
Braga will look to Ricardo Horta to provide the spark in attack having scored 15 Primeira Liga goals this season. The striker has also found the net in his last two matches against Benfica and is backed to score at 6/4 with bet365.
Darwin Nunes has been one of the standout players for Benfica this season with his impressive performances earning admirers across Europe. The Uruguayan striker has 20 Primeira Liga goals this season and is priced at 11/8 by bet365 to get on the score sheet on Friday.
Anything else catch the eye?
There is plenty of attacking quality on both sides and Friday’s clash is expected to produce goals. Over 2.5 goals is priced at 4/5 with bet365 while Unibet is offering odds of 39/20 on over 3.5 goals.
Braga and Benfica often make fast starts and with both teams scoring in the first half in the reverse fixture, a similar outcome could be considered at 37/13 SBK.
This match between SC Braga and Benfica will be played on Apr 1, 2022 and kick off at 20:15. Check below for our tipsters best SC Braga vs Benfica prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.