Braga vs Maccabi Petah Tikva prediction 25.07.2024 | Europa League
Braga
2 - 0
Elapsed: FT
Half time: 0 - 0
Full time: 2 - 0
Kick off:
Date:
Maccabi Petah Tikva
1
1.09
X
10.80
2
26.00
The match has ended, you can view football predictions for today and football predictions for tomorrow.
Contents
- Competition: Europa League Qualifiers, 2nd Round, 1st Leg
- Date: Thursday, 25th July, 2024
- Kickoff: 20:30 UK / 21:30 CEST
- Venue: Estádio Municipal de Braga (Braga)
On Thursday evening, Braga will welcome Maccabi Petah Tikva in the first leg of the second round Europa League Qualifiers at Estádio Municipal de Braga in Portugal.
In the 21st century, Braga have been mostly among the top four teams in Portugal. Last year, they finished 4th, which led to the Europa League Qualifiers. They had the chance to secure 3rd place and the EL Group phase but lost against Porto in the last game of the season. Still, they are a team that constantly plays in the Europe Group phase and even reached the knockout phase five seasons in a row. So, they have every reason to be optimistic about their chances this year.
Maccabi Petah Tikva are not among the best teams in Israel. In fact, in the recent few years, they were even relegated twice. Last year, they played in the relegation group, finished 8th, and were nowhere near the European spots. However, they won the domestic Cup and had the opportunity to play in the European Qualifiers for the first time since the 2006/07 season. In the second round, bookies give Maccabi very little chance to secure the third round, offering odds between 4.8 and 6.0 on that bet.
Braga vs Maccabi Petah Tikva pick: Braga to win and cover the -2 AH spread
In recent years, Braga have been pretty good in Europe, especially at home. They won 11 of the last 16 home games and faced much better teams than Maccabi Petah Tikva. Additionally, Braga were good at home in the Liga Portugal as well, winning almost 60% of their games.
On the other hand, Maccabi Petah Tikva were terrible on the road last year in the domestic league, winning only two games in 16 rounds. Objectively, the Israeli league is nowhere close to Portugal's, so it is unreal to expect a good performance against Braga, which beat teams like Real Madrid, Panathinaikos, or Napoli last season!
Simply, Braga are too good for Maccabi Petah Tikva, and considering all the above, anything but a comfortable win for Braga would be a massive surprise.
Braga team news
In the previous friendly game against Rayo Vallecano, central defender Paulo Oliveira suffered an injury and left the field after only 12 minutes. With him out, we will most likely see Sikou Niakate and Serdar Saatci as the starting central defenders.
Eight players left the team over the summer, a few of whom were key players last season, like Cristian Borja, Abel Ruiz, Alvaro Djalo, or Jose Fonte. However, the club added several young players who should be good replacements.
Last matches of Braga
-
Braga
2 : 2
Rayo Vallecano
Club Friendlies 3
-
Braga
2 : 1
Anderlecht
Club Friendlies 3
-
Braga
0 : 2
Moreirense
Club Friendlies 3
-
Lausanne Sport
1 : 3
Braga
Club Friendlies 3
-
Stade Lausanne-Ouchy
0 : 1
Braga
Club Friendlies 3
Braga lineup
Goalkeeper
-
1
Matheus
Defenders
-
2
Víctor Gómez
-
4
Sikou Niakate
-
5
Serdar Saatci
-
19
Adrian Marin
Midfielders
-
28
Joao Moutinho
-
16
Rodrigo Zalazar
-
18
Vitor Carvalho
Forwards
-
7
Bruma
-
23
Simon Banza
-
21
Ricardo Horta
Maccabi Petah Tikva team news
On 19th July, two key players, central midfielder Niv Yehoshua and their best striker Idan Toklomati are called for the Olympics and will not be available for the Europa League Qualifiers.
On 1st July, the club appointed Dan Roman as its new head coach. The 41-year-old coach was previously an assistant coach for Hapoel Tel Aviv and Maccabi Netanya, and this is his first job as a head coach. In his first game as the head coach, Maccabi Petah Tikva lost 2:0 against Maccabi Tel Aviv in the Super Cup.
Last matches of Maccabi Petah Tikva
-
Maccabi Tel Aviv
2 : 0
Maccabi Petah Tikva
Super Cup
-
CSKA Sofia
2 : 1
Maccabi Petah Tikva
Club Friendlies 3
-
Maccabi Petah Tikva
1 : 0
Hapoel Beer Sheva
State Cup
-
Beitar Jerusalem
1 : 1
Maccabi Petah Tikva
Ligat ha'Al
-
Maccabi Petah Tikva
4 : 1
Hapoel Petah Tikva
Ligat ha'Al
Maccabi Petah Tikva lineup
Goalkeeper
-
34
Marco Wolff
Defenders
-
2
Andreas Karo
-
25
Plamen Galabov
-
32
Mohamed Hindi
Midfielders
-
12
Alon Azugi
-
53
Liran Hazan
-
6
Yonatan Teper
-
16
Yarden Cohen
Forwards
-
10
Ariel Lugassi
-
9
Saliou Guindo
-
7
Luka Stor
4 Reasons why Braga should win and cover the -2 AH spread
- Braga won five of seven pre-season games
- Maccabi Petah Tikva won just two games in 16 road league games last year
- Maccabi Petah Tikva haven't played a game in Europe since the 2006/07 season
- Braga's total market value is more than 16 times bigger than Maccabi's
Main prediction Braga - Maccabi Petah Tikva
AH1 (-2)
Best Odds:
22Bet
1.48
