The action continues in round 11 of the Brasileiro Serie A as Bragantino and Vitoria go head to head at the Estadio Nabi Abi Chedid on Sunday.
After stumbling into the new campaign, a rejuvenated Leeo da Barra have put together two wins in their last two outings and will be looking to pick up where they left off in midweek.
Match preview
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Bragantino suffered a second consecutive defeat against Palmeiras this year as they were beaten 2-1 by Abel Ferreira's side at the Allianz Parque on Friday.
Having claimed a 1-0 victory when they met in January, Rafael Viega and Rony scored either side of Matheus Fernandes's 49th-minute equaliser to hand Palmeiras another win over the visitors.
Bragantino have now lost two of their last three matches — with a 2-1 victory over Juventude on June 15 sandwiched between the two wins — and have failed to win five of their last seven Serie A games since late April.
With 15 points from 10 matches, Pedro Caixinha's men are currently eighth in the Serie A standings but could move level with fourth-placed Athletico Paranaense with all three points on Sunday.
Bragantino will be backing themselves to find their feet this weekend as they return home where they have lost just one of their last 15 matches across all competitions while claiming 11 wins and three draws since the start of February.
Meanwhile, after a turbulent start to the new top-flight campaign, newcomers Vitoria have turned a corner in recent weeks and are starting to feel at home in the big leagues.
The Leeo da Barra improvement was highlighted on Thursday when they handed Atletico Mineiro just their second league defeat of the season in a 4-2 thriller at the Estadio Manoel Barradas courtesy of goals from Matheuzinho, Erick Castillo and a brace from Willian Oliveira.
Prior to that, Vitoria secured their first league victory on June 16, when they edged out Internacional 2-1 on home turf to also bring a run of 11 consecutive matches without a win across all competitions to an end.
With Thursday's victory, this weekend's visitors have now gone unbeaten in four games on the bounce, picking up two wins and two draws since a 2-0 home defeat at the hands of Atletico Goianiense on June 1.
This fine run of form has seen Thiago Carpini's men surge from the doldrums as they now sit 15th in the Serie A table with nine points from 10 games, level on points with 14th-placed Criciuma.
However, next up for Vitoria is a journey to the Estadio Nabi Abi Chedid, where they have lost each of their last four visits, conceding seven goals and scoring just once since a 2-2 draw in October 2011.
Team News
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Bragantino will have to cope without the services of right-back Jose Hurtado, who is currently with the Ecuador national team at the ongoing Copa America.
Veteran striker Eduardo Sasha will also play no part in Sunday's game as he is currently suspended after picking up a straight red card against Atletico Mineiro on June 12.
On the injury front, Brazilian midfielder Nathan Camargo continues his lengthy spell on the sidelines through a severe knee injury and is also out of contention for the hosts.
As for Vitoria, midfielder Caio Vinicius crossed the yellow-card threshold with his booking against Mineiro last time out and the 25-year-old will play no part in this weekend's clash.
Carpini will be unable to name several players down the spine of the team as Camutanga, Mateus Gonclaves, Everaldo, Dudu and Iury Castilho continue their spells on the sidelines.
Veteran defender Bruno Uvini has missed each of the last four matches through a thigh injury while 25-year-old Janderson is currently recuperating from a knee problem.
Bragantino possible starting lineup:
Schwengber; Mendes, Santos, Henrique, Capixaba; Fernandes, Ramires, Evangelista; Helio, Sasha, Mosquera
Vitoria possible starting lineup:
Arcanjo; Caceres, Reynaldo, Leonardo, Esteves; Willian, Santos, Naldi, Matheusinho, Alerrandro; Osvaldo
We say: Bragantino 2-1 Vitoria
While Bragantino will be looking to return to winning ways, they will need to show their mettle against a Vitoria side who are on the up. However, the hosts boast the firepower needed to get the job done and we predict that they will come away with all three points.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Joshua Ojele
