The final match of the round of 16 in the 2024-25 Taca de Portugal will see Braga playing host to Lusitano Evora 1911 at Estadio Municipal de Braga on Wednesday night.
The winner of this match will progress to the quarter-final of the competition where they will take on either Farense or Benfica, who face off on Tuesday night in Faro.
Match preview
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Braga will enter this match off the back of a disappointment in the Taca da Liga, where they were knocked out of the competition 3-0 by Benfica, who went on to lift the title, beating Sporting Lisbon on penalties in the final.
Os Arsenalistas have been in fairly good form lately, having beaten the Eagles in the Primeira Liga a week earlier, while they have only suffered one defeat in their last six top-flight games since the start of December.
However, at home, the hosts will be looking for improvement, as they have only won one of their last five matches at Estadio Municipal de Braga across all competitions, despite scoring two or more goals in four of those games.
In this competition, Carlos Carvalhal's side beat 1º Dezembro 2-1 in their first match with Joao Moutinho scoring a last-gasp winner, but they got through the last round with relative ease, downing Leixoes 2-0 on the road in November.
Braguistas were eliminated from this competition in this round last season, but reached the final in two of the previous three campaigns and have won the trophy twice in five final appearances (2015-16 and 2020-21).
Meanwhile, Lusitano 1911 are enjoying an impressive domestic season but were forced into second place in Group D of the Campeonato de Portugal over the weekend when they were beaten 1-0 by Lagoa.
However, the fourth-tier outfit have already enjoyed success in this competition, claiming the scalps of top-flight opponents Estoril on penalties in round two before sending AVS packing in the last round with a 3-2 victory.
The Green and Whites are now set to make their first-ever appearance in the fifth round of the Taca de Portugal, having never progressed beyond round three in 14 previous attempts dating back to 1996-97.
Pedro Russiano's side has a mixed record on the road recently, with two wins, one draw and two defeats in their last five outings across all competitions, while failing to keep a single clean sheet during that period.
Team News
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Carvalhal is likely to make several changes to the side he sent out in the defeat to Benfica last week for this match, with Diego Rodrigues, Bright Arrey-Mbi and Ismael Gharbi all likely to make the starting lineup.
The hosts will have to make do without defensive duo Paulo Oliveira and Sikou Niakate for this one, with both players ruled out for the foreseeable future due to a calf and muscle injury respectively.
Former Benfica youth player Dida has caught the eye for Lusitano in this competition, and he should continue to lead the line in this match after netting a brace in the victory over AVS in round four.
Johnson Juah was withdrawn before the hour mark in the defeat to Lagoa over the weekend and is flagged as a doubt for this trip. The 26-year-old midfielder will likely be replaced by Tomas Lima in the starting 11 if he is unable to return in time for kickoff.
Braga possible starting lineup:
Matheus; Gomez, Arrey-Mbi, Bambu, Ferreira; Rodrigues, Gharbi, Horta, Gorby; Martinez, Fernandez
Lusitano Evora 1911 possible starting lineup:
Valverde; Pinto, Andrade, Soares, Palancha; Monteiro, Lopes, Baptista, Lima, Davou; Dida
We say: Braga 3-0 Lusitano Evora 1911
Lusitano have already overcome two top-flight teams in this competition, but they are now set to face a Braga side that will be determined to make amends for their Taca da Liga disappointment last week.
The hosts are massive favourites in this contest and we feel they will book their spot in the quarter-final with a fairly straightforward victory in this one.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Devesh Jaganath
