Braga vs Napoli prediction: EUROPE: Champions League – Group Stage betting tips on match 2023-09-19 19:00.
After defeating Panathinaikos in UEFA Champions League (UCL) qualifying, Braga make their triumphant return to European football’s biggest stage for the first time in 11 years as they welcome Italian champions and last year’s UCL quarter-finalists, Napoli. It has been a lukewarm start to the league season for Artur Jorge’s men (W2, D1, L2), with a 3-1 defeat against Farense at the weekend potentially causing Portuguese nerves to jangle.
And so they should, especially when considering Braga’s poor all-time record against Italian opposition (W3, D2, L6), with a pair of defeats against Fiorentina just last season making it four straight losses against such sides. That’s not to mention the fact that last season’s third-placed Primeira Liga side have suffered group stage eliminations in both of their prior UCL proper appearances.
Napoli’s defence of the Scudetto has got off to a rather shaky start, with a 2-2 draw against Genoa last weekend leaving them five points off the pacesetters in Serie A. Even so, a new UCL campaign comes with hopes and dreams attached, and they’ll hope to get off to a positive start by improving their rock-solid all-time record against Portuguese opponents (W6, D4, L2).
New boss Rudi Garcia has faced Braga twice before whilst at Marseille (W1, L1), but he really needs to tip the record in his favour here if his new side are to justify their position as second favourites to win the group. That’s especially true if he has any ambitions of replicating Luciano Spalletti, the now-departed Napoli boss who won five of his six UCL group games with the club last term, with all victories seeing the side score at least three times.
Players to watch: Braga’s chief supplier, Ricardo Horta, assisted five of their last six goals in European action, while he also scored and assisted for Portugal during the international break. Also impressing for his country, Napoli’s Victor Osimhen added to his three club goals for the season with a stunning hat-trick for his native Nigeria prior to his return.
Hot stat: Five of Napoli’s last six UCL away games have been settled by a margin of two or more goals (W3, L3).