Sporting Braga vs Real Betis Prediction: Archbishops to make the most of the home advantage

The Uefa Europa League quarter-finals present us with a Portugal versus Spain tussle as Sporting Braga host Real Betis at Estadio Municipal de Braga on Wednesday (17:45 BST, TNT Sports 4) for the first leg of their tie.

Both sides required comeback victories in the last round to reach this stage so we could be set for some more drama over these next two fixtures. Below you will find my Sporting Braga vs Real Betis predictions for this first leg, as well as the latest team news and match odds from Betfred.

Team News

Braga defender Adrian Barisic remains out of action with a muscle issue he picked up in February. Victor Carvalho is also unavailable owing to a hip problem.

Rodrigo Zalazar hasn't featured since picking up a knock against Porto, ruling him out of international duty for Uruguay.

Football Odds

Giovani Lo Celso is going to miss Wednesday's clash for Betis because of a muscle injury, while Junior Firpo and Angel Ortiz are both still building up their fitness.

Isco has been making progress in his recovery from a long lay-off, but it looks likely it to be a while before the veteran is back in contention to play.

Sporting Braga vs Real Betis Odds

Braga are a 6/4 bet to win this first leg. This is a good price considering they have won 11 of their last 15 home games in all competitions.

The draw is available at 12/5, with Betis having experienced two stalemates across their past four competitive fixtures. Los Verdiblancos are 9/5 to come away with the victory on Wednesday.

At least one team failed to score in four of Betis' previous six outings and BTTS - No is marketed at 1/1 for this clash.

Today's Football Fixtures

Match Result - Sporting Braga @ 6/4

Braga's strong home form might strike fear into the hearts of the Betis players given their troubling form of late. Manuel Pellegrini's side have lost each of their past three away trips in all competitions, so it is difficult to see them suddenly turning their fortunes around against a strong Braga outfit.

The hosts are well-regarded for their defensive structure, so they should have little trouble nullifying a Betis team that is struggling to have an impact in the final third away from home.

As we saw in the last round, Los Verdiblancos cannot be written off should they lose the first leg. However, I am expecting Braga to take command of their home leg and give themselves the advantage ahead of their trip to Seville.

Which Team To Score - Only Sporting Braga @ 16/5

I believe there's value to be had in backing Braga to be the only team to score in this match. The Archbishops have been the only side on the scoresheet in six of their 10 outings in the Europa League since the beginning of the league phase.

As mentioned earlier, Betis head into this contest having struggled in front of goal in recent weeks. The visitors have blanked in four of their last six competitive games. At 16/5 (implied probability of 23.8%), I fancy both clubs' trends to continue on Wednesday.

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