SC Braga vs Santa Clara: Prediction, Lineups, Kickoff Time | Primeira Liga 2025/26

On: December 13, 2025 1:06 AM

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SC Braga vs Santa Clara — Match Preview

A fascinating clash concludes the weekend action at the Estádio Municipal de Braga on Sunday, 14 December 2025. SC Braga are flying high, sitting 5th with 22 points and fresh off a massive 1–0 away victory against Nice in the Europa League. They are in formidable form, having won four of their last five matches across all competitions. Santa Clara, sitting comfortably in 11th with 15 points, arrive in Minho with stability but face a daunting task against a Braga side that thrashed them 5–0 in the Cup just two months ago.

SC Braga vs Santa Clara — Match Info

Competition: Primeira Liga (Matchday 14)
Venue: Estádio Municipal de Braga (Capacity: 30,286)
Date: Sunday, 14 December 2025
Kickoff: 20:30 WET | 21:30 CET
Referee: TBC (FPF Appointment)

SC Braga vs Santa Clara — Match Stakes

SC Braga (5th — 22 pts):

Win → Moves to 25 pts; keeps pressure on the top 3 and potentially jumps to 4th
Draw → Disappointing result at home; slows down their recent momentum
Loss → Missed opportunity to close the gap on title rivals

Santa Clara (11th — 15 pts):

Win → Moves to 18 pts; cements a spot in the top half of the table
Draw → A valuable point at one of the toughest grounds in Portugal
Loss → Remains stuck in mid-table; goal difference could take a hit

SC Braga vs Santa Clara — Team News

SC Braga:

Rotation Expected: Heavy fatigue after Thursday’s match in Nice
Zalazar R. — Available (Suspended only for European games)
Moutinho J. — Available (Likely to control midfield)
Niakate S. — Available (Defensive leader)

Santa Clara:

Fresh Legs: No midweek game means a full week of preparation
Batista G. — Available (Key Goalkeeper)
Safira — Available (Top scoring threat)
No major suspensions reported from previous round

SC Braga vs Santa Clara — Team Form (Last 5 Matches)

SC Braga

11/12 — 1–0 vs Nice (Europa League)
07/12 — 2–1 vs Famalicao (Liga)
02/12 — 4–0 vs Arouca (Liga)
28/11 — 1–1 vs Rangers (Europa League)
23/11 — 4–2 vs Nacional (Cup)

Santa Clara

06/12 — 1–0 vs Casa Pia (Liga)
30/11 — 1–1 vs Rio Ave (Liga)
23/11 — 3–0 vs Industria (Cup)
09/11 — 1–2 vs Sporting CP (Liga)
04/11 — 0–1 vs Gil Vicente (Liga)

SC Braga vs Santa Clara — Head-to-Head (Last 5 Meetings)

30/10/2025 — Braga 5–0 Santa Clara (Cup)
03/05/2025 — Braga 1–1 Santa Clara (Liga)
22/12/2024 — Santa Clara 0–2 Braga (Liga)
14/05/2023 — Braga 5–3 Santa Clara (Liga)
06/01/2023 — Santa Clara 0–4 Braga (Liga)

SC Braga vs Santa Clara — Playing XI (Predicted Lineups)

SC Braga (4-2-3-1)

Matheus; Gomez, Oliveira, Niakate, Marin; Carvalho, Zalazar; R. Horta, A. Horta, Bruma; El Ouazzani

Santa Clara (3-4-3)

Batista; Lima, Rocha, Venancio; Calila, Firmino, Ferreira, Matheus Nunes; Vinicius, Safira, Ricardinho

SC Braga vs Santa Clara — Impact Bench

SC Braga: Gharbi (Dribbling vs tired legs), Roger (Pace on wing)

Santa Clara: Alisson (Target man), Klismahn (Midfield energy)

SC Braga vs Santa Clara — Tactical Analysis

SC Braga

Carlos Carvalhal’s side is playing arguably the best football in Portugal right now outside of Sporting CP. Their offensive fluidity, led by the Horta brothers and Bruma, is devastating. However, fatigue is the enemy here. After a grueling win in Nice on Thursday, Braga may start slow. They will rely on dominant possession to conserve energy and look for quick combinations to break Santa Clara’s low block.

Santa Clara

Vasco Matos will set up his team to frustrate. Santa Clara usually defends in a compact 5-4-1 shape away from home against big teams. Their plan will be to absorb the early pressure and hit Braga on the counter-attack, exploiting any lethargy in Braga’s transition defense. They must avoid conceding early, as they crumbled (0–5) in the Cup recently when they opened up too soon.

SC Braga vs Santa Clara — Key Battles

Bruma vs Calila — speed mismatch on the flank
Zalazar vs Firmino — battle for midfield dominance
Niakate vs Safira — physical duel in the box
Matheus vs Ricardinho — goalkeeper focus vs counter-attack threat

SC Braga vs Santa Clara — Spotlight Players

SC Braga — Ricardo Horta

The captain is the heartbeat of this team. In games where legs are heavy, his intelligence and ability to find space in the box are invaluable. He scored heavily in previous meetings against Santa Clara.

Santa Clara — Gabriel Batista

The goalkeeper is consistently one of Santa Clara’s best performers. To get a result at “The Quarry,” he will need to make 5 or 6 crucial saves.

SC Braga vs Santa Clara — Prediction

SC Braga 3–1 Santa Clara

Despite the potential fatigue, Braga’s squad depth and current confidence are too high to ignore. They have dominated this fixture historically and are scoring goals for fun (12 goals in last 5 games). Santa Clara might nick a goal, but Braga should win comfortably.