Real Betis
- Betis have drawn three consecutive matches in all competitions, although they still progressed with a 4 - 0 win over Panathinaikos in the previous round.
- The home of Real Betis should be buzzing on Thursday night with a UEFA Europa League quarter-final at stake.
- Manuel Pellegrini’s side have enjoyed a few ups and downs in the LaLiga campaign to date, but they are still in the hunt for a top-six finish while aiming for a semi-final in this competition.
- Betis are a 4-2-3-1 side with lots of scope to morph into a 4-3-3 when they get the ball back, which they do with great regularity.
- They are a team of quick combinations, half-space movement and sudden vertical bursts - a bit like Braga, but with a bit more flair.
- Antony and Pablo Fornals are the two creative engines of their side and can break the game wide open in transition or on set plays.
Braga
- Braga have played with poise and discipline in Europe, fighting back from two goals down to win in the last round.
- Carlos Vicens has implemented a Guardiola-influenced possession-based system at Braga which is tailor-made for the Portuguese side.
- The Arsenalistas are inside the top four in Primeira Liga and have been able to juggle the two competitions with aplomb, only just edging Arouca 1-0 away in their last match.
- Braga have the class and the character to make this very awkward for Betis and not go out the Europa League without a fight.
- Ricardo Horta is their talisman and captain, but Florian Grillitsch, who opened the scoring against Betis, is a presence in the midfield and set-piece threat.
Head-to-Head
- This will be a tight, tense tie between two clubs with recent pedigree in European competition.
- Real Betis were runners-up in the UEFA Conference League in 2022-23 and they face a club that were runners-up to Porto in the Europa League final in 2011 in this Spanish/Portuguese knockout contest.
- The aggregate score is tied at 1-1 after a tense first leg in Portugal, but the game could well be decided by fine margins on Thursday.
Key Players
- Ricardo Horta is their talisman and captain, but Florian Grillitsch, who opened the scoring against Betis, is a presence in the midfield and set-piece threat.
- Antony and Pablo Fornals are the two creative engines of their side and can break the game wide open in transition or on set plays.
Betting Insights
- Betis are favorites at 1.85 to progress, but Braga are priced well at 4.1 to go through, with the draw available at 3.5.
- Backing over 2.5 goals at 1.9 is a decent play as there will be chances at both ends.
Prediction
Back Betis to just have enough to get through with a 2-1 win in the match and 3-2 on aggregate, with Cucho Hernández , who took the penalty for Betis in the first leg, the best bet on the anytime scorer market.
