A Brasileiro mid-table encounter is set to play out this weekend with Bragantino taking on Athletico Paranaense at Estadio Nabi Abi Chedid on Sunday night.
Both sides are looking to bounce back from defeat in their last league match and will enter this contest with the hosts in 10th place in the league standings while the visitors are eighth.
Match preview
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After shooting out the blocks with five games unbeaten at the start of the season, Bragantino have lost momentum in recent weeks and have been slipping in the standings, currently on 22 points after 16 games.
Prior to their 1-1 draw against Barcelona SC in the Copa Sudamericana round of 32 in midweek, Massa Bruta suffered back-to-back league defeats to Sao Paulo and Cruzeiro, conceding twice in each game.
With those results, Pedro Caixinha's side have now conceded 20 goals this season, which is already more than half of the 35 they allowed across the entire of the 2023-24 campaign.
At home, though, Bragantino have maintained an impressive record this season, currently on a three-match winning streak, while they have only lost once in seven league matches at this venue this year.
The last encounter between these sides ended in a 1-1 draw, extending the hosts' unbeaten record against this opponent to three matches in a row following back-to-back victories.
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Meanwhile, Athletico Paranaense's poor run of form at home continued last week when they were beaten 3-1 by Bahia, marking their fourth consecutive league match without victory on home soil.
Everaldo and Biel gave the visitors on the day a two-goal advantage just 15 minutes into the match, and while Lucas Di Yorio gave PR a glimmer of hope by halving the deficit at the hour mark, hopes of a comeback were quickly ended with Luciano Juba netting a third for the Tricolor 10 minutes from the final whistle.
That result left Furacao on 25 points after 16 league games this season, five points behind fourth-placed Sao Paulo, and it also marked the end for Juca, who was axed the day after the defeat.
Martin Varini has been brought in to steady the ship for Athletico and the Italian has made a positive impression since his arrival, securing a 3-0 win against Ypiranga RS in the Copa do Brasil and a 1-1 draw away to Cerro Porteno in the first leg of the Copa Sudamericana round of 32.
The new boss will now be hoping to carry his unbeaten record into the league competition where his side have won their last two away games and are unbeaten in their last three on the road in all competitions.
Team News
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Defensive midfielder Jadsom has now missed Bragantino's last three matches in all competitions with a knee injury and he is expected to remain sidelined for at least another three weeks.
Thiago Borbas came off the bench and scored a goal in stoppage-time for Massa Bruta in midweek, and he will be hoping to make the starting 11 this weekend, possibly alongside Helio Junio and Henry Mosquera.
Athletico PR will have to make do without the services of Thiago Heleno and former Manchester City midfielder Fernandinho after the pair crossed the yellow card threshold in the last match.
In terms of injury absentees, midfield duo Felipinho and Nikao are ruled out with illness and a strained hamstring, respectively, while Lucas Esquivel is flagged as a minor doubt.
Bragantino possible starting lineup:
Schwengber; Mendes, Henrique, Santos, Candido; Fernandes, Ramires, Evangelista, Junio, Sasha, Mosquera
Athletico Paranaense possible starting lineup:
Krepski; Godoy, Rocha, Gabriel, Esquivel; Erick, Fernando, Julimar, Zapelli, Cardoso; Pablo
We say: Bragantino 2-1 Athletico Paranaense
While both these sides have been bang-average this season, Bragantino have maintained an impressive home record and are on a three-match winning streak at this venue. This should be a close contest but we fancy the hosts to edge the result by the final whistle.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Devesh Jaganath
