Braga vs Freiburg – News and Probable Lineups

The Estadio Municipal de Braga is set to host an exciting first-leg fixture in the Europa League, featuring Braga against Freiburg this Thursday evening.

The winners of this two-legged matchup will face either Nottingham Forest or Aston Villa in the final, scheduled for May 20 at Besiktas Park in Istanbul.

Match overview

After losing the Europa League final to fellow Portuguese club Porto fifteen years ago, Braga is gearing up for their second significant European semi-final, having eliminated Real Betis with a 5-3 aggregate score in the quarter-finals earlier this month.

The Arsenalists have secured seven victories from twelve matches in this season’s competition (D3 L2), including five wins that helped them finish sixth in the 36-team League Phase and an impressive 4-0 win over Ferencvaros in the second leg of the last 16.

Under the management of Carlos Vicens, who was previously Pep Guardiola’s assistant at Manchester City, Braga has made a significant impact in the Europa League, achieving a competition-best seven clean sheets. Nonetheless, their inconsistent domestic performances have left them trailing the top three in the Primeira Liga.

Indeed, Braga appears poised for a seventh fourth-place finish in nine seasons, particularly after their 2-1 defeat to Santa Clara last weekend left them a staggering 16 points behind Sporting Lisbon, who sit in third place, with only three league matches left to play.

This backdrop allows Braga to go all out in their Europa League semi-final, and Vicens’s squad can take heart from their unbeaten streak of four matches at home against German teams (W3 D1). They have also triumphed in three of their five European home games this season without conceding (D1 L1).

Freiburg had not advanced past the last 16 in a major European tournament until this season, but the Bundesliga side is now in their first-ever semi-final, demonstrating significant improvement under 41-year-old head coach Julian Schuster.

The Breisgau-Brasilianer concluded the 36-team League Phase in seventh place, tied on points with Braga (17), before overcoming Genk (5-2) and Celta Vigo (6-1) in the last 16 and quarter-finals, respectively. Schuster described their win against Celta Vigo as a “very historic moment,” emphasizing the need to maintain “great focus” as they advance in the tournament.

However, Freiburg’s recent domestic form has dipped, as evidenced by a 2-1 semi-final defeat to Stuttgart in the DFB-Pokal, followed by a heavy 4-0 loss to Borussia Dortmund in the Bundesliga last weekend, leaving them in eighth place and just outside the European qualification spots on goal difference.

Heading into Thursday’s first leg, Freiburg has managed to win only two of their last nine away matches in the Europa League (D3 L4), failing to score in three of their last four and losing two of their last three without finding the net earlier this year.

The only previous experience Freiburg has in Portugal dates back to the 2013-14 season when they played to a goalless draw against Estoril during the Europa League group stage; a similar result against Braga might not be a disastrous outcome for Schuster’s team before they return home for the second leg next week.

Team News

Braga will be missing Diego Rodrigues (ankle), Sikou Niakate (Achilles), and Adrian Leon Barisic (adductor) due to injuries, while German midfielder Florian Grillitsch is doubtful due to a knock sustained against Santa Clara last weekend.

Gabriel Moscardo, who is on loan from PSG, is unavailable due to suspension, meaning Leonardo Lelo or Paulo Oliveira could step into the back three alongside Gustaf Lagerbielke and Vitor Carvalho.

Rodrigo Zalazar has netted a team-high 23 goals across all competitions this season, and the versatile forward is anticipated to start the match alongside Pau Victor and Ricardo Horta, who has scored four goals in the Europa League.

For Freiburg, midfielder Patrick Osterhage has been out since late March with a knee injury, while defender Max Rosenfelder is also absent as he continues to recover from a hamstring issue.

Jordy Makengo missed the defeat to Dortmund with a thigh problem, and it remains uncertain whether he will be fit to return on Thursday. If necessary, Christian Gunter will likely start at left-back.

Vincenzo Grifo is Freiburg’s top scorer in all competitions with 13 goals and is also tied for the top scorer in the Europa League with Yuito Suzuki (four). Both players are expected to feature in the attack alongside Niklas Beste and central striker Igor Matanovic.

Braga probable starting XI:

Hornicek; Lagerbielke, Carvalho, Leonardo Lelo; Gomez, Gorby, Grillitsch, Martinez; Zalazar, Victor, Horta

Freiburg probable starting XI:

Atubolu; Treu, Ginter, Lienhart; Eggestein, Sins; Best, Suzuki, Faucet; Matanovic

Both Braga and Freiburg will be eager to recover from their domestic setbacks last weekend, each believing they can emerge victorious in what is likely to be a closely contested first-leg clash. However, the hosts’ defensive stability may provide them with a slight advantage this time around.