Napoli will be looking to make a positive start in a tricky Group C of the UEFA Champions League as they travel to SC Braga on Wednesday. The Italian champions have built some experience in recent forays into the competition and should have the edge here.
SC Braga are playing in the Champions League for the first time since 2012 after finishing third in the Primeira Liga. They came through the qualifiers, claiming a 3-1 aggregate victory over Greek side Panathinaikos in the playoffs.
While things have been smooth in the Champions League qualifiers, Braga have looked slightly erratic on the domestic scene. Artur Jorge’s men are currently eighth in the Primeira Liga standings after claiming just two wins from their opening five matches.
SC Braga are coming off a 3-1 defeat to Farense in a Primeira Liga fixture last weekend. They have also found things a bit tricky in front of their fans lately, with just one win in their last three matches at the Estadio Municipal de Braga.
Napoli were one of the surprise teams in last season’s Champions League as they progressed all the way to the quarterfinals before losing to AC Milan. They breezed through the group stage claiming five wins from six matches and will be targeting a similar outcome this time around.
However, the Italian champions have not made a strong start to the season with just two wins from four matches so far. Rudi Garcia’s men head into Wednesday’s Group C opener off the back of a 2-2 draw with Genoa in a Serie A fixture last weekend.
Napoli will be looking to channel some of their performances in last season’s Champions League where they claimed three wins in five matches on the road. They also won two out of three away matches during the group stage, including a 6-1 victory at Ajax.
How the bookies view it
The bookies have installed Napoli as overwhelming favourites with a win priced at 5/6 by bet365. Braga are considered outsiders at home at 17/5 with Unibet while a draw is set at odds of 29/10 by William Hill.
Head to head
Both teams met in a friendly back in 2012 with Napoli claiming a 3-1 victory.
Players to watch
Alvaro Djalo impressed for Braga during the qualifiers, scoring in three of the four matches. The attacker could be worth keeping an eye on and is priced at 7/1 by bet365 to score anytime on Wednesday.
Napoli are still heavily dependent on Victor Osimhen for and the Nigerian striker has already found the net three times. He will be keen to maintain his strong start to the season and is priced at evens with William Hill to find the net on Wednesday.
Anything else catch the eye?
Braga and Napoli have not been particularly convincing at the back and both teams could be backed to score at 8/13 with William Hill. The Neapolitans saw over 3.5 goals in their Serie A fixture last weekend and could be set for a repeat at 15/8 with Paddy Power while over 2.5 goals is valued at 8/11 with bet365.
There were more goals after the break in Napoli’s Serie A fixture last weekend and Wednesday’s clash could be set to follow a similar pattern at evens with bet365.
This UEFA Champions League match between SC Braga and Napoli will be played on Sep 20, 2023 and kick off at 20:00. Check below for our tipsters best SC Braga vs Napoli prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
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