Santos vs RB Bragantino Prediction: Who will reach the Paulistão final?

Santos hosts Bragantino in the Paulistão semi-final but has decided to play at the Neo Qúimica Arena, Corinthians' stadium, instead of playing at the Vila Belmiro. Santos sold 40.000 tickets so far, so the club expects massive support from its fans to try and make it to the final. The last time the Fish reached the competition's decisive match was in 2016 when it beat Audax-SP 1-0 thanks to the former Brazilian international Ricardo Oliveira's goal, who played for Valencia, Betis, and AC Milan. Today, times are different, as Santos will compete in the Série B for the first time, but the club's ambition remains high.

Victory in the quarter-finals against Portuguesa was more difficult than expected. Santos was the favorite against the Lusa but didn't play particularly well, and the victory came only in the penalty shootout. Rómulo Otero's red card in the 73rd minute didn't help, but even with eleven players, the Fish struggled against Portuguesa. In March, Santos and Bragantino met in the first stage of the Paulistão, and Red Bull won 1-0. It will take a good performance for Santos to reach the final.

The Massa Bruta failed to reach the Copa Libertadores group stage and missed out on a big season goal. Bragantino was knocked out in the third round by Botafogo and will play in the Copa Sudamericana now. In the Paulistão quarter-finals, Pedro Caixinha's team easily beat Inter de Limeira 3-0 at home, looking determined to reach the final for the first time since 1990, when the club won the competition for the only time in its history. Bragantino's coach at the time was Vanderlei Luxemburgo, who later coached Real Madrid's Galacticos team. The Red Bull will try everything to reach the Paulistão final, but to do so, it must overcome a motivated Santos side that will have strong support from its fans.

Although Santos is now a Série B team, that means little in a semi-final. The club has a long history in the competition with 22 trophies, contrasting with Bragantino's sole victory in 1990. The weight of tradition and the stands full of Santos fans could narrow the gap in quality between the two sides and even give Santos some advantage. In a semi-final where anything can happen, I'm betting on a match with a maximum of two goals scored. The teams met at the beginning of March, and the Red Bull team won 1-0. If the game ends in a draw, it goes straight to penalties, as there is no extra time.