The Expert: Braga under pressure to keep Europa League flag flying

It may not be a sentiment that’s universally shared, but the prospect of Europa League action offers a frisson of excitement to Portuguese clubs. That’s particularly the case for Braga, finalists in 2011 when they were edged out in Dublin by their compatriots, André Villas-Boas’ all-conquering Porto. Domingos Paciência’s team had already ruffled a few feathers in the Champions League, having beaten Arsenal when Arsène Wenger’s men visited the Minho. 

That was the apex of Liga domination of the Europa League - Braga reached Dublin by besting Benfica in a fiercely contested semi-final. It helped shape the pecking order in the second stratum of European nations, with Portugal leapfrogging France so the Liga third-placed team goes directly into the Champions League playoff round, and the team that completes the Ligue 1 podium has an extra round of qualifying to negotiate.

Fast forward just over five years and Braga are back representing the nation in Europe’s secondary competition but are a little lonelier, with Arouca and Rio Ave both having lost out in the qualifying rounds. Their only chance of company is if Porto or Benfica fall short of their targets in the Champions League - and the champions made it to the quarter-finals against Bayern Munich last term, of course - and join up with them after Christmas. 

For that to happen, José Peseiro’s side would need to fulfil their half of the bargain, starting with bringing back a positive result from their trip to Turkey to face Konyaspor on Thursday. With just one point taken from the opening two group games - including defeat in Lviv against former coach Paulo Fonseca’s Shakhtar Donetsk - it is imperative that they do well out of the upcoming double-header with the Süper Lig side in order for the Liga NOS to continue successfully mining what has been such a plentiful terrain for them in recent years.  

The international break has been a good point to take stock of all Portuguese sides’ progress, with this weekend’s Taça de Portugal third round fixtures meaning a second successive weekend without Liga action. Braga are already in their now-habitual position of fourth, dominating the best of the rest in recent seasons without every really threatening to bust up the established order of os três grandes since their surprise second-place finish in 2010, they have really created a big three-plus-one, rather than a big four.  

There’s the feeling, though, that it could and should have been better, despite only one defeat in the first seven Liga matches, leaving Braga five points short of Benfica, the leaders, and two behind the inevitable pair of Porto and Sporting. Their sole loss was at Benfica, in one of the standout matches of the Liga campaign thus far.

Rui Vítoria’s team won 3-1 on that night at the Luz, but were slightly flattered by the score in a game that was carefully balanced until Pizzi and Kostas Mitroglou scored twice in four minutes during the game’s final quarter to allow the hosts to pull away. Braga’s total of five shots on target was as many as Turkish champions Besiktas landed in prising a draw from their own trip to Lisbon, and more than the two other Liga visitors to the Luz - Vitória Setúbal and Feirense - managed between the pair of them.  

The offering of credit to Peseiro and his players is even more worthwhile when one considers the changes to the staff and personnel, a process begun by Fonseca’s departure, even if Braga are accustomed to extensive player turnover. President António Salvador registered a net transfer market profit in excess of €25m this summer, but the losses of Rafa and key defender Willy Boly were late in the window, and the convoluted manners of their respective sales can’t have helped anybody. 

Neither player has made a huge impact at their new club to date. Rafa has been out injured, while Boly has had to bide his time on the bench at Porto, only making his full debut in the weekend Taça win at Gafanha. Yet the Euro 2016-winning playmaker in particular is a huge loss. His development from an orthodox(ish) number 10 into a more lateral threat was already apparent at the very start of the season, in the Supertaça defeat to Benfica. 

The margin of victory (3-0) was again a little misleading, and Rafa had represented Braga’s best chance of a leveller, bursting from deep and rounding Júlio César before shooting over. This directness had been clear as Rafa hit 12 goals in all competitions in the 2015/16 season, with a modest two assists.  

So Saturday’s win at third-tier Oliveirense in the Taça was important, as Peseiro got to test out the squad’s depth, promoting B teamer Xeka and ex-Arsenal youngster Rui Fonte for their maiden starts, with the latter scoring the goal that to all intents and purposes finished the game just before half-time. Pedro Santos, the midfielder who has four in six Liga starts this season, scored the other two, and will be a threat to Konyaspor, buoyed by their 1-1 weekend draw at leaders Istanbul Basaksehir. There was also a useful 90 minutes for Nikola Stojilkovic, who did stay after scoring 15 goals in all competitions last season but who has started only once in the Liga to date.  

The Taça mattered not least because Os Guerreiros are the holders - returning coach Peseiro is the unusual situation of helping to defend a title that was denied him; he led Porto in the Jamor final, with Braga’s penalty shootout win the last act under then-coach Fonseca before he left the club for Shakhtar. As they face off with Fonseca this time, Braga need to get to work quickly in order to continue a noble recent Portuguese tradition.

Can Braga turn their Europa League fortunes around when the meet Konyaspor on Thursday night? Let us know in the comments below