• Nottingham Forest are yet to lose a Europa League away game this season

• Sporting Braga have lost ten of their 20 previous meetings with English clubs

• Recommended bet: Nottingham Forest to win

With two fixtures remaining, just four points separate first from 13th in the UEFA Europa League league phase, and both Sporting Braga and Nottingham Forest are in with a chance of securing automatic qualification via a top-eight finish.

The Tricky Trees head to Portugal two points shy of their hosts, but know that a win in Braga could put them in an excellent position ahead of the final round of fixtures.

The latest Sporting Braga vs Nottingham Forest odds are available on LiveScore Bet

Team news

Sporting Braga's top goalscorer, Rodrigo Zalazar, is suspended for this tie and joins injured duo Amine El Ouazzani and Sandro Vidigal on the sidelines.

New signing Samy Merheg is not registered for this competition yet, so will also miss out.

Nottingham Forest are still without Chris Wood and John Victor through injury, while Ola Aina, Omari Hutchinson, Taiwo Awoniyi, Angus Gunn, and Jair Cunha were not selected in their Europa League squad.

The stats

• Nottingham Forest have already beaten Portuguese side FC Porto this season

• Sporting Braga have lost two of their last three matches

• Os Arcebispos lost their last home Europa League game 4-3 against Genk

• The Tricky Trees have not lost any of their three away fixtures in this competition

The latest Sporting Braga vs Nottingham Forest odds are available on LiveScore Bet

Prediction

Nottingham Forest are slight favourites to take all three points at Estadio Municipal de Braga on Thursday, and Sean Dyche's side look good value to do just that against a Sporting Braga team missing some key figures.

Most influential among those is suspended top goalscorer, Zalazar, and his absence will be all the more notable following his last-gasp winner against Tondela last time out.

That tense victory followed back-to-back defeats for the Portuguese club, and their last Europa League home game saw them lose a seven-goal thriller against Genk.

Nottingham Forest fans can take heart from their hard-fought point against Premier League leaders Arsenal last time out, and the visitors can draw confidence from their 2-0 win over Portuguese giants Porto earlier this season.

Porto lead the Portuguese Primeira Liga and have a 22-point advantage over Braga, so this should be an easier test for the Tricky Trees.

Forest have won four of their last eight away games, including a 2-1 win in Utrecht in their last Europa League away game, and they look a good bet to grab a much-needed three points on Thursday.

Back Nottingham Forest to win @ 13/10 with LiveScore Bet

The latest Sporting Braga vs Nottingham Forest odds are available on LiveScore Bet