Preview: Bragantino vs Coritiba – prediction, team news, lineup

RB Bragantino will look to return to winning ways when they welcome Coritiba to the Cicero de Souza Marques Stadium on Sunday in the 20th round of the 2026 Brasileiro.

Massa Bruta will be hoping to make home advantage count as they look to stay strong in the hunt for top spot, while Coritiba are looking for a response after back-to-back defeats.

Game preview

RB Bragantino enters round 20 in fifth place, with 30 points. Their campaign so far has brought nine wins, three draws and seven defeats from 19 matches. The Sao Paulo state side sit in the Copa Libertadores qualifiers and are looking to finish in the top four of the Brasileirao.

In the previous round, Massa Bruta drew 1-1 with Fluminense. Before that, they beat Internacional 3-1 in Braganca Paulista. This team is undefeated in five matches between Brasileirao and Copa Sul-Americana, winning three times in a row with two draws.

Bragantino’s busy schedule will see them face Sporting Cristal just three days after this match, on July 29, to decide their place in the last 16 of the Copa Sul-Americana – the first leg, in Lima, ended 0-0. As hosts, the team tends to commit more consistently than they do away from home, and their attacking style shows in the numbers: they have opened the scoring in seven of their last eight games.

Under Vagner Mancini, who has been in charge of the squad since October, Bragantino relies on consistency and organization. The Cicero de Souza Marques stadium, which is the club’s temporary home while the Nabi Abi Chedid Stadium is being rebuilt, often serves athletes. The need to divide their focus between two competitions in the same week, however, will require careful physical and emotional management of the team.

Coritiba is in tenth place, with 26 points. Coxa wants to climb to the top, but they are facing an unstable situation: they lost their last two matches – 3-0 to Flamengo at the end of May, before the World Cup break, and 1-3 to Palmeiras when they returned to the game in the last round.

The alviverde attack has been consistent throughout the season and still needs some getting used to. The Defence, in turn, conceded more goals than in the previous campaign (27 in 19 games), when the defensive system was the team’s greatest strength (23 goals allowed in the entire Serie B campaign). This imbalance between the two areas of the pitch helps to explain Coxa’s inconsistency in 2026.

Coach Fernando Seabra is in charge of the Coritiba side that won promotion as Serie B champions for 2025 – a title won under Mozart, whom Seabra replaced at the end of the year. This is the coach’s third Serie A team in charge, following spells at Cruzeiro and Bragantino himself, who sacked him in October.

Fernando Seabra’s job is to keep Coritiba’s momentum going as they return to the top flight and establish the team in the national top flight. A good result in the away match against RB Bragantino could strengthen the coach’s job in this first stage of Brasileirao.

Bragantino Brasileiro form:

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Bragantino form (all competitions):

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Coritiba Brasileiro form:

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Coritiba form (all competitions):

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Team News

© Imago / IMAGO / Sports Press Photo

RB Bragantino could have an important boost in the meeting with Coritiba. Having represented Paraguay in the World Cup, Isidro Pitta is available again and has a good chance to start the game.

Massa Bruta will also be without two important players in this game. He was sent off in the draw with Fluminense, with midfielder Fabinho and defender Agustin Sant’Anna both suspended. On the other hand, defender Juninho Capixaba is available again after being temporarily suspended due to the accumulation of yellow cards.

Coritiba comes with a positive outlook in terms of their team. Fernando Seabra has got Pedro Rocha back after serving his sentence, and has also welcomed back players such as Maicon, Tinga, Keno and goalkeeper Pedro Morisco, giving the team more options.

On the other hand, Coritiba remains without one confirmed absence. Sebastian Gomez is still unavailable as he continues to follow protocol, while Rodrigo Rodrigues has been called up to the squad for the first time since suffering a knee injury and could be a new addition to Fernando Seabra.

Bragantino starts with the program:

Tiago Volpi; Andres Hurtado, Alix Vinicius, Gustavo Marques, Juninho Capixaba; Rodriguinho, Ramires; Herrera, Lucas Barbosa, Fernando; Eduardo Sasha. Coach: Wagner Mancini.

Coritiba may start the list:

Pedro Rangel; Tinga, Tiago Coser, Jacy, Bruno Melo; Thiago Santos, Vini Paulista; Lavega, Josue, Breno Lopes; Pedro Rocha. Coach: Fernando Seabra.

We say: Bragantino 3-1 Coritiba

Bragantino came into the competition in better form and were a tough proposition at home, while Coritiba came looking to stop a two-game losing streak in the league.

Massa Bruta should have enough attacking quality to secure the three points, although Coritiba can find the net, and we expect the hosts to eventually run out comfortable winners.

For data analysis of the most likely results, score lines and more for this game please click here.