In search of a third consecutive win for the first time this season, Maritimo square off against Braga at the Estadio Braga Municipal on Saturday.
Os Arcebispos are currently unbeaten at home in each of their last 13 outings in all competitions, dating back to a 2-1 defeat against Sporting Lisbon back in August, and will look to keep the juggernaut rolling.
Match preview
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Braga put on a resilient display last Sunday when they fought back from behind to salvage a 2-2 draw against Famalicao on home turf despite playing with 10 men for most of the game.
In a game where Bruno Rodrigues received his marching orders in the 24th minute, Ricardo Horta and Ruben Lima scored for either side as the first half ended all square, and after Ivo Rodrigues scored in the 81st minute to put the Vila Novo ahead, substitute Mario Gonzalez restored parity once again nine minutes later.
This followed a 6-0 thumping of Arouca at the Estádio Municipal de Arouca on December 30, when 21-year-old Vitor Oliveira scored a first-half hat-trick to inspire Os Arcebispos to a resounding win.
Braga head into Saturday's game unbeaten in all but one of their most recent six league outings, claiming four wins and one draw and losing 1-0 at the hands of league leaders Porto in that time.
With nine wins, five draws and three defeats in 17 games so far, Carlos Carvalhal's men have collected 32 points to sit fourth in the Primeira Liga standings, six points ahead of Gil Vicente in the final Conference League qualification spot.
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Meanwhile, Maritimo moved into the top half of the standings last time out courtesy of a 2-1 victory over Portimonense at the Estadio Municipal de Portimao.
After Carlinhos saw his 24th-minute penalty go well off target, Fabricio made no mistake from the spot to cancel out Rafik Guitane's first-half opener, but Joel Tagueu came up trumps for the visitors as he netted a last-gasp winner in the first minute of stoppage time.
After managing just one win in their opening 11 league games of the season, Maritimo have turned a corner in recent weeks, picking up four wins and one draw from their last six outings.
This upturn in form has seen O Maior das Ilhas rise to ninth place on the log after picking up 20 points from 17 outings, and they will look to keep the ball rolling and strengthen their position in the top half of the table.
However, next up is an opposing side who they are winless against in six of the last seven meetings between the sides since 2019, losing four and picking up two draws.
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Team News
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Braga will take to the pitch without Portuguese defender Nuno Sequeira, who has been out of action since early November when he sustained a knee problem in the game against Benfica.
He is joined on the club's injury table by fellow countryman David Carmo, who continues his long road to recovery after fracturing his ankle last February.
Raul Silva, Abel Ruiz and Fabiano Silva are all major doubts for Os Arcebispos as they continue their spells in isolation after missing the game against Famalicao at the weekend through COVID-19.
Twenty-year-old Rodrigues will also play no part in Saturday's game as he is suspended after receiving his marching orders just 24 minutes into the aforementioned game.
With his strike against the Vila Nova last time out, Horta has now entered double figures in league goals for the season, and the 27-year-old will certainly be one to look out for.
Like the hosts, Maritimo will have to make do without a few key players as the attacking duo of Ricardinho and Tim Soderstrom have been sidelined through injuries.
Portuguese midfielder Xadas is set to miss his seventh consecutive game after picking up a knee problem against Tondela back in November.
Fellow midfielder Ivan Rossi is also a doubt for the O Maior das Ilhas after the 28-year-old missed the trip to Portimonense last time out through injury.
Braga possible starting lineup:
Matheus; Oliveira, Leite, Galeno; Couto, Mineiro, Moura, Al Musrati; Medeiros, R Horta, Oliveira
Maritimo possible starting lineup:
Victor; China, Leo, Junior, Costa; Henrique, Vidigal, Pelagio; Beltrame, Alipour, Tageue
We say: Braga 2-1 Maritimo
Braga have been imposing against Maritimo on home turf, claiming six wins and two draws from their last eight encounters since 2015, and despite the visitors' recent upturn in form, we predict they will extend this dominance and come away with all three points.
Top tip
Joshua Ojele
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Braga win with a probability of 75.19%. A draw had a probability of 16.2% and a win for Maritimo had a probability of 8.64%.
The most likely scoreline for a Braga win was 2-0 with a probability of 13.73%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 1-0 (11.75%) and 3-0 (10.7%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (7.67%), while for a Maritimo win it was 0-1 (3.28%). The actual scoreline of 0-1 was predicted with a 3.3% likelihood.
