Brage take on the visitors CFR Cluj Panathinaikos in the second leg of UEFA Europa League semifinal round. First leg result: 2-1. The match will be played on Thursday, August 14th at Estádio Municipal de Braga (Braga).
Braga are trying to put pressure on the traditional top three giants of Portuguese football. Trophies remain out of reach, but they do manage to overtake one of the big teams from time to time. Still, a 4th-place finish has become their usual spot — and that’s exactly where they ended last season. Thus, after strengthening their squad with Pau Víctor from Barcelona and Moscardo from PSG, they once again began their campaign in the Europa League. Even against their first opponent, Levski, things proved to be difficult. After a goalless draw in Bulgaria, they still couldn’t score against the underdogs at home, finishing 0-0 again. A penalty shootout loomed, and only on the 104th minute did Fran Navarro finally break the deadlock, allowing them to progress without unnecessary drama. Over the weekend, they secured a confident victory over Tondela. Braga have now gone unbeaten in five matches across all competitions, and their attack has started to click, scoring at least two goals in each of their last three games. Defensively, they’ve looked organized as well, keeping three clean sheets in that span, which should give them extra confidence before this tie.
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CFR Cluj are already deep into their season, but not without problems. The "Railwaymen" have managed to win the domestic title 8 times over the past two decades. Their last championship came in 2022, and since then they’ve twice finished as runners-up to FCSB, although they did manage to lift the cup again this past spring. After the summer break, however, there have been plenty of complaints about Dan Petrescu and his team. It all started with a 1-2 defeat in the Romanian Super Cup against Steaua. In the league, they snatched a win in the opening round against Unirea Slobozia with a goal in stoppage time, then followed up with a draw against Rapid and losses to Argeș and Universitatea Craiova. Their meeting with Csikszereda was postponed. At least in the Europa League they’ve been solid so far: both against Paksi and Lugano they earned goalless draws away and then clean-sheet victories at home to advance. Against the Portuguese, however, they started at home, where a brace from Gorby saw the visitors from the west of the continent win as expected. CFR’s away form is a concern — they have failed to win in their last four road matches and have scored only twice in that period. Injuries to key midfielders have also disrupted their rhythm, making this an even tougher challenge in Portugal.
In 2012, the clubs were drawn into the same Champions League group. The Romanians surprisingly managed to beat their opponents twice. The Portuguese are stronger and should prove it once again — we back them with a -1 goal handicap.
Prediction for the match: Braga to win with -1.0 handicap.
