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

Having narrowly edged out Ludogorets in the playoffs, Ferencvaros are in action in the Europa League round of 16 when they play host to Braga at the Groupama Arena on Thursday.

Os Arcebispos, who are one of just three sides unbeaten away from home in the competition, will journey to Hungary looking to extend this impressive run of results and place one foot in the quarter-finals.

Match preview

A 2-0 victory over Ludogorets in the second leg of the Europa League playoff on February 26 was enough to send Ferencvaros through to the round of 16 as they overturned their first-leg deficit to secure a 3-2 aggregate victory.

One week on from a 2-1 defeat at the Ludogorets Arena, the Hungarian powerhouse got the job done in front of their home supporters, with Gabi Kanichowsky and Kristoffer Zachariassen netting first-half goals to turn the tie on its head.

Having picked up four wins and three draws from their first seven games, Ferencvaros were left spitting feathers in the group finale on January 29, when they lost 4-0 against Nottingham Forest at Home Park, a result which saw them miss out on automatic passage to the round of 16 by just one point, as they finished 12th in the group standings.

Robbie Keane’s men head into Thursday’s first leg fresh off the back of moving into top spot in the Hungarian NB I standings courtesy of a 3-1 home victory over Nyiregyhaza Spartacus thanks to goals from Mohammad Abu Fani, Yusuf Bamidele and Mariano Gomez.

The result over Nyiregyhaza made it five victories on the bounce in all competitions for Ferencvaros, including an emphatic 5-0 win over Kazincbarcikai SC in their Magyar Kupa quarter-final clash at the Varady Bela Sportkozpont.

After thrashing Lincoln Red Imps 9-1 on aggregate in the Europa League qualifying playoffs in August, Braga picked up consecutive victories over Feyenoord, Celtic and Red Star Belgrade in their first three group games, scoring five goals and keeping three clean sheets in a stellar start to the campaign.

Carlos Vicens’s men first dropped points on November 6, when they fell to a narrow 4-3 defeat against Belgian outfit Genk at the Estadio Braga Municipal, but a run of two wins and two draws from their final four matches saw them finish sixth in the table with 17 points and book their spot in the round of 16.

Braga continued their fine run of results in the Portuguese Primeira Liga on Saturday when they fought back from behind twice to snatch a 2-2 draw against title-chasers Sporting Lisbon in what could prove to be a huge result in their quest for European qualification.

Goncalo Inacio and Luis Javier Suarez netted on either side of Ricardo Horta’s 34th-minute equaliser to put Sporting Lisbon in front heading into half time, but Rodrigo Zalazar kept his cool under pressure as he converted his 96th-minute penalty to hand Braga a share of the spoils.

With that result, Os Arcebispos have now gone unbeaten in nine of their last 10 matches across all competitions, picking up seven wins and two draws, with a 2-1 defeat against Gil Vicente in the Primeira Liga on February 14 being the exception.

Braga, who sit fourth in the Primeira Liga standings, five points more than fifth-placed Gil Vicente just below the UEFA Conference League qualifying spot, now turn their sights to the Europa League, where they finished unbeaten on the road in the group-stage phase, picking up eight points from four matches to finish with the sixth-best away record.

Ferencvaros Europa League form:

Ferencvaros form (all competitions):

Braga Europa League form:

Braga form (all competitions):

Team News

Swiss defender Stefan Gartenmann continues his long road to full fitness after suffering a severe injury back in November and the 29-year-old is also out of contention for Ferencvaros.

Bence Otvos has also missed the last three games since coming off injured against Ludogorets on February 26, and the Hungarian midfielder will also play no part in Thursday’s clash.

As for Braga, Vicens will be unable to name Spanish defender Victor Gomez, who is currently suspended due to accumulated number of yellow cards in the group-stage phase.

On the injury front, Sikou Niakate (muscle), Amine El Ouazzani (foot), and Bosnian defender Adrian Barisic (adductor) all continue their spells on the sidelines and will play no part in Thursday’s clash.

They are joined on Os Arcebispos’ injury table by Brazilian midfielder Vitor Carvalho, who is set to sit out his seventh straight game since coming off injured against Go Ahead Eagles in the Europa League group finale on January 29.

Ferencvaros possible starting lineup:

Grof; Cisse, Raemaekers, Gomez; Makreckis, Kanichowsky, Fani, Madarasz; Cadu, Joseph, Bamidele

Braga possible starting lineup:

Hornicek; Arrey-Mbi, Oliveira, Lagerbielke; Martinez, Moutinho, Grillitsch, Dorgeles; Zalazar, Horta, Victor

We say: Ferencvaros 1-2 Braga

Braga have enjoyed an impressive Europa League campaign so far, but they will need to be at their best against a Ferencvaros side who have won each of their last five matches and have proven tough to crack at home.

Ferencvaros will feel they are favourites, given their home advantage, but the Portuguese side boasts a slightly superior squad on paper and we are backing them to come away with a narrow victory.

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