Preview: Braganca vs Braga - prediction, team news, lineups

Braga kick off their 2025-26 Taca de Portugal campaign with a clash against Campeonato de Portugal outfit Braganca at the Estadio Municipal de Braganca on Saturday.

While the hosts will be out to cause an upset and reach the fourth round, Os Arcebispos will head into the weekend in search of a morale-boosting result after seeing their winless run in the Primeira Liga extend to six games last time out.

Match preview

Braganca suffered consecutive away defeats in the league for the first time this season just before the international break as they were beaten 3-0 by Mirandela when the two sides met at the San Sebastian Stadium on October 5.

In a game where Andre Carvalho received his marching orders, Nuno Goncalves netted a first-half brace to put Mirandela in the driver’s seat before defender Pedro Vergueiro struck in the 88th minute to put the icing on the cake.

Since kicking off the league campaign with consecutive victories over Celoricense and Vianense in August, Andre Irulegui’s men have lost two of their subsequent three league matches, with a 1-0 home win over Marr Tino on September 28 being the exception.

Braganca, who are fourth in the Campeonato de Portugal Group A table, now turn their attention to the Taca de Portugal, where they kicked off the campaign with a 5-0 victory over 10-man Brito SC in the second round at the Estadio Municipal de Braganca on September 21.

On the other hand, Braga left it late against Sporting Lisbon just before the international break as they netted in the seventh minute of stoppage time to force a 1-1 draw at the Estadio Jose Alvalade.

Colombian striker Luis Javier Suarez maintained his red-hot form in front of goal as he struck in the 19th minute to put Sporting Lisbon in front, but Rodrigo Zalazar kept his cool under pressure as he converted his 97th-minute penalty to hand the visitors a point.

Prior to that, Braga made it two wins from two games in the Europa League on October 2, when they edged out Scottish powerhouse Celtic thanks to goals from Ricardo Horta and Gabri Martinez at Celtic Park.

With the result against Benfica, Carlos Vicens’s men have failed to taste victory in six straight Primeira Liga matches, claiming four draws and losing twice since kicking off the season with successive victories over newcomers Tondela and Alverca.

Braga have picked up two wins and four draws from their eight Primeira Liga matches this season to collect 10 points and sit eighth in the league table, level on points with Alverca and Nacional.

Os Arcebispos now get underway in the Taca de Portugal, where they will be looking to surpass their quarter-final finish from last season, when they fell to a 1-0 loss against Benfica at the Estadio da Luz back in February.

Braganca Taca de Portugal form:

Braganca form (all competitions):

Braga form (all competitions):

Team News

Despite the result against Mirandela last time out, we expect Braganca to field a similar XI this weekend, with Didier Mosquera, Pipo Marques, Eddy and Nahuel Machado forming the back four once again.

Patchu was hooked off at the break against Mirandela and the 25-year-old could drop to the bench this weekend, with Guinea-Bissau forward Baio da Silva getting the nod.

As for Braga, they remain without the services of 20-year-old defender Jonatan Noro, who has been ruled out through an Achilles tendon injury.

Other than that, Os Arcebispos head into the weekend with a clean bill of health and no suspension concerns, meaning that Vicens could hand out minutes to several fringe players.

Having completed a move from Strasbourg in the summer, goalkeeper Alaa Bellaarouch could be given the nod between the sticks while Bright Arrey-Mbi could start at the defensive end of the pitch.

Braganca possible starting lineup:

Junior; Mosquera, Marques, Eddy, Machado; Silvano, Capelo, Ferreira; Parini, Pires, Da Silva

Braga possible starting lineup:

Bellaarouch; Arrey-Mbi, Carvalho, Lagerbielke; Lelo, Grillitsch, Gorby, V Gomez; Martinez, Victor, Vidigal

We say: Braganca 0-3 Braga

While Braga have struggled for results in the league, they will be looking to find their feet this weekend ahead of their return to the Europa League on October 23.

While Braganca will be keen to test their strength against a top-flight side, we predict that Vicens’s men will make light work of the hosts and secure a comfortable victory at the Estadio Municipal de Braganca.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.