O Jogo Bonito recently made its return in Brazil with the resumption of state championships and now the new season of Serie A in the country is set to begin. Santos have been one of the top names in Brazilian football for quite some time but their opening league game this time around pits them against a new team hellbent on achieving success. Red Bull Bragantino (formerly known as Atletico) have recently been acquired by the Red Bull brand and are the latest club under the umbrella alongside the likes of RB Leipzig. The team have added to their ranks in the off-season and will be hoping to hit the ground running against Santos who have struggled recently despite a 2nd-place finish last season.
Santos sacked Portuguese coach Jesualdo Ferreira after just eight months in charge following the club’s disappointing exit from the Sao Paulo state championship. The Black and Whites were beaten 3-1 by Ponte Preta at the quarter-final stage of the Campeonato Paulista at the end of July meaning they have drawn one and lost two of their three games since football returned. Santos have only lost one of their last nine head-to-heads with Bragantino when hosting and they did win 14 of their 19 Brasileiro home matches last season but this is their first meeting with RB Bragantino and recent form suggests a change in fortune for both clubs.
The visitors last won at the Estadio Vila Belmiro back in 2018 and will come into this game confident of leaving with all three points again. The newly renamed Red Bull Bragantino won four of their matches in the state championship including their last two. Bragantino were promoted as champions from Serie B last season but have showed that they can tussle with the big names of Brazilian football having beaten Botafogo twice and Sao Paulo in the last month.
Santos were impressive at home last season but with a limited number of spectators allowed into stadiums things could be different this time around. The visitors have made the big time and with wealthy owners to back them they could be a force in years to come and a win over Santos could let everyone know that they have arrived. It’s the first day of the season though so It's not always easy to predict although I can see Bragantino at least taking a point. I’m tipping Bragantino double chance (draw or win).