Football don return for Portugal as Moreirense and Braga go face each other for di opening match of 2026-27 Primeira Liga season. Di game go happen for Estadio C. Joaquim de Almeida Freitas on Sunday 9 August, kick-off time na 15:30.
Braga don dey look very sharp for pre-season. Dem finish fourth last season, and dem wan start dis campaign on top. For dia last league game, dem draw 2-2 with Estrela Amadora, with Gabri Martinez and Pau Victor scoring. Dem also beat Zeleznicar Pancevo 4-0 for Europa Conference League qualifier, and later beat Dinamo Minsk 1-0 for di first leg of third qualifying round, thanks to Ricardo Horta penalty.
Moreirense, wey finish seventh last term, no too get good form. Dem draw 0-0 with AVS for dia last home game, even though dem get 64% possession. Dem only win one of four friendlies, but dat one na 2-0 victory over Amarante. Coach Vasco Botelho da Costa go hope im boys fit improve for di new season.
Di record between dese two teams favour Braga well well. Braga don beat Moreirense for dia last 13 competitive meetings. For di last 10 H2H games, Braga win all. Dem also win dia last 6 matches for dis stadium. So na serious mountain Moreirense go climb if dem wan get anything from dis game.
For team news, Moreirense go miss Dinis Pinto, wey still dey recover from shoulder injury. Dem get new signings Koby Mottoh and Michael Dacosta from Bournemouth. Braga go miss Sikou Niakate (Achilles) and Francisco Chissumba (leg). Dem don sell last season top scorer Rodrigo Zalazar for record fee, but Gabriel Silva and Denis Huseinbasic don settle quick.
Di expected lineups show Moreirense go use 4-3-3 with Ferreira for goal, plus L Santos, K Monteiro, Batista, Kiko for defence. Braga go use 3-4-3 with Bernardo as keeper, Lagerbielke, V Carvalho, Arrey-Mbi for back three, and V Gomez, Gorby, Moutinho, D Rodrigues, G Martinez for midfield, with R Horta and P Victor up front.
Odds dey show say Braga be strong favorite. Dem dey at -147 to win, and some analysts say di real chance na around 65-70%. For Asian Handicap, Braga -1 dey available at -108. Correct score 2-0 for Braga dey at +480. Bet builder wey dey popular na Braga win, both teams no score, and Braga under 5.5 corners.
Moreirense home record no bad, but Braga away record strong. Braga don win plenty for dis venue. All di evidence point to Braga taking all three points. Di only question na how many goals dem go score.
