Will Braga defend their possession?

Pep Guardiola has influenced an entire generation of coaches with his positional play. Between 2021 and 2025, Carlos Vicens – the new coach of SC Braga – worked alongside the Catalan. His playing style is similar to the Citizens’ possession football and will protect the Arsenalistas’ goal in the Braga vs. CFR Cluj prediction.

The Portuguese were dominant in the first leg and we expect them to be dominant in the Braga vs. CFR Cluj prediction. The Arcebispos had at least 65 percent possession in three of their four competitive games under Vicens and did not allow more than three shots on goal in any of those games.

Braga – CFR Cluj Head-to-head record / H2H record

After a quick dig through the club histories, you will actually find two encounters between the two clubs. Both direct duels were played in the 2012 Champions League group stage. Both matches ended in a clean sheet for the Feroviarii.

However, the visitors are far from successful this year. Cluj failed to score in their two previous away games in the Europa League qualifiers. In addition, Dan Petrescu’s team lost three of their last four competitive games, which has widened the gap in the Braga vs. CFR Cluj odds.

Braga – CFR Cluj prediction

The home side’s philosophy is based on controlling the game and possession. If Vicens’s players maintain possession for long periods, the risk of conceding a goal decreases. We also expect Braga to be strong at home. Last season, the Portuguese club celebrated all three victories in the Europa League group stage at home, two of them without conceding a goal.

Added to this is the poor form of the Romanian visitors. Coach Petrescu was pondering a lack of wins after five of the previous six games. He has been unable to provide his players with any helpful solutions recently. The attack in particular has been lacking ideas lately. In three of the last four competitive games, the creative moments fell short of the expected 0.95 goals.