Claudio Braga believes it would be amazing to cap a dream homecoming with a goal against Benfica as Hearts prepare to face the Portuguese giants at the Estadio da Luz.
The striker is thrilled to be back in Portugal, playing against one of his country's biggest clubs on the iconic European stage.
Braga is already living out a fantasy but wants to go further by finding the net and helping Hearts silence the vociferous home support.
Dream Homecoming
"To score would be amazing, of course. I'm a striker, so scoring in any game would be amazing. Against a Portuguese team in the Europa League would definitely have a different flavour," he said.
"As a young lad growing up in Portugal, we all know how big a club Benfica is, not only in Portugal but also abroad. Just the fact that I'm playing against them on this stage, in European competition, is something special."
Braga, who left Portugal in the fourth division, reflected on his journey: "It was one of my dreams to play in the Champions League, the Europa League and competitions like this. There's nothing like the feeling of being home, so that's really good, especially in the circumstances we're in, playing Europa League football against a big club. It's amazing."
Silencing the Crowd
Having never previously visited Benfica's home stadium, Braga expects a hostile atmosphere: "They're a big club with very good supporters, so I'm sure it'll be crazy. Hopefully we can silence them at times and that'll be good for Hearts."
Despite Benfica being overwhelming favourites, Braga remains defiant: "Listen, I understand why most people, or everybody, thinks like that. But personally I've learned that in football nothing is impossible. Nobody comes here to lose and we're not a club that wants to do that."
Strong Mentality
The forward emphasised the team's mindset: "The mentality within the group is very strong. We need to make fewer mistakes because that's been the biggest difference in our previous games."
"Of course we know Benfica are a big team and stronger on paper, but nothing is impossible in football and we're going to try to hurt them. We know that Benfica are favourites. That's obvious to anyone who understands football. It's going to be a very difficult game. Benfica have a different level of experience in European competitions and in matches of this category. They have high-calibre players."
Braga concluded: "But the truth is that we came here to work for Hearts and to try to keep the tie alive for Tynecastle. I think that's what you can expect."
