Braga vs Panathinaikos Prediction 23.08.2023

• Competition: UEFA Champions League Qualifying - Play-off Round
• Date: Wednesday, 23rd, August 2023
• Kickoff: 20:00 UTC +1 / 21.00 CEST
• Venue: Estadio Municipal de Braga (Braga)

Looking to join Portuguese giants Porto and Benfica in the Champions League group stage, Braga will host Greek side Panathinaikos in the first leg of their final qualifying round at the Estadio Municipal de Braga on Wednesday.

Braga vs Panathinaikos Betting Tips: Braga to Win

Even though they finished the job of progressing to the final qualifying round of the Champions League already after the first leg with a 3-0 victory, Braga did not want to stop and added four more pieces in the second leg, which eventually resulted in a convincing victory on aggregate 7-1 against the Serbian side TSC. 

Although they now face incomparably tougher opposition, Os Arcebispos will be confident of joining Portuguese giants Porto and Benfica in the group stage of the elite competition, having been successful in the play-off round qualifiers both times, defeating Sevilla on aggregate 5-3 in the 2010-11 season and Udinese with 6-5 on penalties in 2012-13.

Following their crushing of last season's Serbian runners-up TSC, Artur Jorge's chosen ones continued to impress in the final third of the pitch and score goals for fun, taking advantage of the sending-off of their Primeira Liga rivals Chaves to grab two late goals and a 4-2 triumph at the weekend. That Braga's offense looks cruel is shown by the fact that they scored at least three goals in six of their last 10 games across all competitions.

While Panathinaikos was supposed to begin the defense of their league title with a home fixture against Atromitos on Saturday 19th August, the Greek Super League decided to postpone that duel in order for their representative to prepare as well as possible for the last European challenge, visiting Braga at the popular "Quarry" in the first leg.

Meanwhile, the Greens from Athens arranged a serious surprise in the third qualifying round of the biggest club competition. They first managed to equalize in the last minute of stoppage time from the white spot, and then on the penalty shootout, after the traumatic extra time, they were infallible against Marseille in a 5-3 victory.

Interestingly, in the same 2010/11 season when Panathinaikos was last a participant in the Champions League group stage, Braga also appeared for the first time on the biggest stage in Europe. We should not forget, however, that the Athenian club experienced four eliminations in a row in the qualifiers, counting the aggregate loss 0-2 to the Spanish side Malaga in the play-off round more than a decade ago.

Even if they possess the better squad on paper, Arthur Jorge's men will know that underestimating Panathinaikos will be a crazy idea, especially after knocking out Marseille in the middle of France. However, Braga should once again highlight their attacking prowess in the right way and gain the lead before they travel to Athens next week.