Thursday night will see holders Braga host Vitoria de Guimaraes in the quarter-finals of the Taca da Liga, a competition now with a new format from this season.
To lighten the workload on sides in Portugal, the competition is now just an eight-team event, with the Primeira Liga's top six and the two automatically promoted clubs fighting it out for the country's second-tier domestic cup.
Match preview
© Imago
After a shock defeat at home to notoriously poor-travellers Bodo/Glimt in the Europa League last midweek, Braga beat Farense 2-0 at the weekend in the league heading into this cup clash.
Carlos Carvalhal's side remain fifth on 17 points, and are only two shy of Benfica in third, but they have played a game more.
A win was welcome after recent results which saw them hammered by Olympiacos, lose at Porto and only limp past third-tier Dezembro in the other domestic cup, before losing to Bodo/Glimt.
Facing bottom-placed Farense was well-timed for Carvalhal, as his Braga side were very comfortable winners in a game where they should have scored more than just two, as they seek to build confidence as they begin their defence of this trophy.
Braga's record in the competition is superb, considering they are not part of the traditional big three in Portugal, having won it on three occasions since 2013, reaching a further two finals as well.
Penalty shoot-out glory against Estoril saw them take the crown last season, and they will see this as a promising opportunity to make it into the semi-finals, a stage they have reached nine times in the last 13 seasons.
However, Guimaraes will provide a stern test, especially given the fact they have already won at the Quarry in the league this season.
© Imago
A 2-2 draw with Estrela at the weekend means Rui Borges's men slipped two points behind Braga, though, as some indifferent league form recently has seen them fall to sixth.
Four wins from their opening five had Guimaraes joint-second early on, but they are now winless in four Primeira Liga outings, having not won since that victory at Braga.
However, a good omen to counteract that is the fact they have been perfect in cup competitions so far.
Perhaps prioritising them over the thankless task of trying to break into the top three is a wise idea, and after beating Pacos de Ferreira in the Taca de Portugal, Guimaraes made it two from two in the Conference League, recording a 2-1 win away to Djurgadens last midweek.
That will be the inspiration to improve their fortunes in this competition, where they have only made it past this stage twice, as they went on to lose in the semi-finals on both occasions, to Benfica in 2008-09 and Porto in 2019-20.
Team News
© Imago
Bright Arrey-Mbi was sent off when Braga lost to Guimaraes in the league last month, and the German will be absent here as he continues to recover from a muscle problem.
Backup Lukas Hornicek will likely be given another chance between the sticks after he started in the Taca de Portugal win just over a week ago, replacing regular Matheus, who has been playing in the league and in Europe.
After scoring off the bench in the win over Farense at the weekend, Amine El Ouazzani will be knocking on the door hoping for a start, having only appeared from the outset twice since the loss to their upcoming opponents.
The only injury concern for Guimaraes regards Jorge Fernandes, who is a doubt for this one due to a shoulder issue.
That leaves Borges with the opportunity to hand starts to some fringe players, like he did in the win over Djurgardens, so Manu, Jesus Ramirez and Joao Mendes are among the players set for another start after featuring in Sweden.
Like their hosts, Guimaraes also have a cup-keeper system in place, so Charles Silva, who started against Dezembro, may get the nod over Bruno Varela.
Braga possible starting lineup:
Hornicek; Victor Gomez, Joao Ferreira, Niakate, Adrian Marin; Zalazar, Joao Moutinho; Bruma, Ricardo Horta, Gharbi; El Ouazzani
Vitoria de Guimaraes possible starting lineup:
Charles Silva; Alberto Costa, Borevkovic, Tomas Ribeiro, Miguel Maga; Joao Mendes, Manu, Handal; Arcanjo, Ramirez, Kaio Cesar
We say: Braga 1-1 Guimaraes (Guimaraes win on penalties)
Braga have only won two of their last five home games against Guimaraes, and lost against them here last month, so it is set to be a close encounter at the Quarry.
Facing the holders to begin your campaign is never favourable, but the visitors will feel they are certainly capable of making it to the semi-finals of a competition where they have frequently underperformed, given their strong cup form so far this season.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Andrew Delaney
