Portimonense and Sporting Braga face at Estádio do Portimonense SC, in a match for the 17th round of the Primeira Liga. The history of recent direct confrontations is favorable to the visiting team, which records 2 wins and 1 draw in the last 3 matches. The last direct confrontation between these two teams, on 20-01-2018, ended with the victory of Sporting Braga by (1-2). Despite being a match between 9th and 2nd of the table, it is actually a match between the 5th classified in home matches and the 7th as a visitor.
Portimonense:
The home team is currently in the 9 th position of the league, with 23 points won, after 7 wins, 2 draws and 7 losses. In the penultimate match, they won in a home match against Benfica, by (2-0). In the last match, they lost out to Marítimo by (2-1). This is a team that usually makes good use of the home advantage, since it has won 17 points in a stadium, where it scored 18 goals and suffered 12 points, against only 6 points in away matches, with 5 goals scored and 15 conceded. In the last 8 home league matches Portimonense has a record of 5 wins, 2 draws and 1 loss, so they have won 17 points out of 24 possible.
For this competition, they have not lost any of the last 7 home matches. In their home league matches the most frequent result at half-time was the 2-0 (3 out of 8 matches). The team has conceded goals in 7 of the last 10 matches, so it has not presented great defensive solidity, but their offense has scored consistently, as they have scored goals in 9 of the last 10 matches for this competition. In their home matches there is a tendency for goals, since 8 of the last 8 matches for this competition have ended with Over 1,5 goals. In 16 matches in this competition, they have only won 1 of the 7 matches in which they have conceded the first goal. There is 1 period that stands out in the last 10 home matches for all competitions: they have suffered 5 of their 14 goals between minutes (76′-90 ‘).
Portimonense starts for this match with a 2-1 defeat in the Marítimo field: the only goal of the team was scored by Paulinho, but it is important to remember that the locals defeated Benfica in the last match in their stadium . In this match against Braga, one of the best teams in the competition, coach António Folha must continue to take risks in the usual tactical system, that is, 4-3-3, with João Carlos being the most advanced player on the team. We remember that the locals present enormous competition in the counterattack: Paulinho is one of the great dangers in this type of transition. For this game the local coach can not count on Tabata, Nakajima, Jacqueson Martínez, Jubal and Lazaroni, players recovering from injury.
Sporting Braga:
After 11 wins, 3 draws and 2 losses, the away team is currently in the 2 nd position, with 36 points won. In their last match, they won in a home match against Boavista by (1-0), after in the previous match they won at home, in a match against Marítimo, by (2-0). This is a stronger team in their stadium, where they won 25 points, against only 11 in their away matches. For the league, Sporting Braga won 11 points out of 21 possible points, after 3 wins, 2 draws and 2 losses in the last 7 home matches. Their attack has scored regularly, since they have scored goals in 9 of the last 10 matches for this competition. This is a team that does not usually feel difficult to open the scoring: it scored the first goal in 12 of the last 16 matches for the Primeira Liga, of these 12 came to the break in advantage in 9 and managed to maintain the advantage until the end of the 90 ‘in 10. In 16 matches in this competition, they have only won 1 result in 4 matches since they conceded the first goal.
The Braga motivated part for this game, after a 1-0 victory at the Boavista reception, adding the second consecutive victory in the Portuguese league: the only goal of the team was scored by Ricardo Horta. We emphasize that the visitors won only 3 of the 7 games played away from home. In this match against Portimonense, coach Abel Ferreira must play in the usual 4-4-2, benefiting possession of the ball and organized attacks, especially through the flanks. The Brazilian Dyego Sousa continues in great form in this championship and has already scored 11 goals. Without great surprises, visitors must take the offensive initiative of the game. For this game the visiting coach can not count on the injured Ricardo Esgaio, Ricardo Fereira, Xadas and Matheus.
PREDICTION: Braga to win @ 1.88
