SC Braga: the only big one in Portugal

Arsenalistas eliminated Betis, in a crazy game, in Sevilla, and are the only Portuguese team still competing in European competitions. In the city of archbishops, all we can think about is Istanbul.

“In the morning coffee, in the afternoon Red Bull. Mister Carlos Vicens, take me to Istanbul”. It has been like this, driven by this song, that the Minho warriors have been dreaming of the Europa League final, scheduled for May 20th, in the aforementioned Turkish city.

O SC Braga took, on Thursday night, in Seville, an important step towards this objective, with a epic comeback over Betis.

The Arsenalistas overtook the Spaniards (5-3 on aggregate over both legs) and will be present in the semi-finals of the competition for the second time in its history. The Germans of the Freiburg.

Your Europa League semi-finalists 🤩

— UEFA Europa League (@EuropaLeague)

From (almost) 0-3 to 4-2

Carlos Vicens’ men knew they were going to have a difficult task at the La Cartuja Stadium (home borrowed from the Béticos, while the mythical Benito Villamarín is in the process of requalification.

The teams entered the field with the tie tied at 1-1 – the result achieved in the first leg, in Pedreira – and the beginning couldn’t have been worse for the Minho armada.

At 26′, SC Braga was already losing 2-0 and the third of the green and white had reached 29′, in a very hard blow for the Portuguese.

The more than 2000 fans from Braga at the Seville amphitheater were devastated and practically without hope until… VAR disallowed the third goal from Betis by out of play.

To be turned face gave a boost of trust to arsenalists. As if it were a goal.

The Minho team then went after the tie – which was 1-3 –, lived up to their name as “warriors” and turned the match around to 4-2 (and the tie to 5-3), with goals from Pau Victor, Vitor Carvalho, Ricardo Horta and Gorby.

The only (big) one in Portugal

At the same time, the FC Porto was also competing for a place in the semi-finals, in England, against Nottingham Forest. Os dragons lost 1-0 and were eliminatedafter the 1-1 draw at Estádio do Dragão, in the first leg.

SC Braga was the only Portuguese team to advance in the Europa League, achieving a phase that had already reached in 2010/11. That year, the emblem of the city of archbishops eliminated Benficahaving ended up losing the trophy in the final game, in Dublin, against the blue and whites, thanks to a solitary goal from Falcon head.

💪Radamel Falcao in one word?

👉 Europa League 2010/11
Goals ⚽ 14
Games 🏟 17

— FC Porto (@FCPorto)

The aforementioned were, in fact, the only occasions on which the Braga team reached so far from Europe. According to Playmaker, yesterday’s result allowed him to surpass Boavista in number of attendances of Portuguese teams in semi-finals of UEFA competitions.

Number of teams 🇵🇹 appearing in the semi-finals of UEFA competitions:
14 Benfica
6 FC Porto
5 Sporting
2 SC Braga⬆
1 Boavista

— Playmaker (@playmaker_PT)

Braga are also the only Portuguese team still competing in European competitions, after the Sporting were eliminated by Arsenalon Wednesday, in the Champions League. The lions drew in London (0-0), but had lost 0-1 in Alvalade.

O Benfica, in turn, fell in February, at the feet of Real Madridalso in the Champions League, in the play-offs.

FC Porto, Sporting, Benfica, but… the SC Braga is the big one at the moment.

“Mister Carlos Vicens, take me to Istanbul”

The hit of the moment… 🕺🔥

— SC Braga (@SCBragaOficial)