Our prediction for this Europa League match:
Braga
Match Time & Date:
22/08/2024
12:30 PM
Prediction: 1-0
Rapid Vienna
Braga and Rapid Vienna face each other at Estadio Municipal de Braga in the closing match of Thursday’s program in the Europa League playoffs. The Reds proved their worth in the double-header with Servette and they must be high on confidence following a hard-fought Primeira Liga win over Boavista. Uruguay midfielder Rodrigo Zalazar is one yellow card away from suspension, while veteran midfielder Joao Moutinho remains in the recovery room.
The Austrians, on the other hand, set up a meeting with Braga by beating Trabzonspor in the third qualifying round. Rapid Vienna defeated Tirol 2-0 in their last league match, but seeing that Braga are a real force to be reckoned with at home, we do not believe that Robert Klaus’ men are capable of claiming yet another major scalp. The likes of Druijf, Gale, and Zimmermann have been struggling with injuries of late, speaking of the visiting team.
Highlighted Player (Ricardo Horta):
Ricardo Horta is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays for Sporting Braga in Primeira Liga. Born in Sobreda, Portugal, on September 15, 1994, Ricardo Horta spent his youth career at Ginasio Corroios, Benfica, and Vitoria Setubal.
The 173-cm-tall winger continued playing for Setubal at the senior level, but he moved to Malaga in the summer of 2014, signing a five-year deal with the La Liga outfit. Ricardo Horta scored only one goal in 48 appearances for los Boquerones in the Spanish top flight before signing a loan deal with Braga. In July 2017, he signed a permanent contract with the Minhotos.
Ricardo Horta made his Primeira Liga debut against Rio Ave back in April 2013, during his spell with Vitoria Setubal. His primary position is left winger, but he is capable of producing good performances as a right winger as well. He made his Portugal debut in a 1-0 loss to Albania in the Euro 2016 qualifiers.
Highlighted Team (Rapid Vienna):
Rapid Wien are considered the most successful club in the history of Austrian football. In 2008 the capital club won their 32th domestic title and in 1995 they clinched their 15th Austrian Cup trophy. Die Grun-Weissen were founded back in 1898 as Erster Wiener Arbeiter-Fussball-Club and one year later the club was renamed to Sportklub Rapid Wien.
In 1904 the club’s colours were changed to green and white and they have been wearing green and white shirts ever since. In 1985 Rapid made it to the Cup Winners Cup final and it has to be noted that they participated in the final competition in 1996 as well. Famous German footballer Lothar Matthaus was in charge of the team between September 2001 and May 2002, but he failed to record a good result with the Weststadion outfit.
Weststadion has been the home ground of Rapid Wien since 16 July, 2016 and you should bear in mind that the capacity of the stadium is 28 000. Rapid’s fiercest rivals are Austria Wien.
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