Separated by just one point and one place in the Primeira Liga standings, Famalicao and Boavista go head to head at the Estadio Municipal de Famalicao on Saturday.
This will be the second meeting between the sides this season after the Vila Nova cruised to an emphatic 5-2 victory when they met in November's reverse fixture.
Match preview
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Famalicao will feel disappointed not to have come away with maximum points two Fridays ago when they were held to a late 1-1 draw by a resilient Vizela side.
In a cagey affair at the Estadio do FC Vizela, Bruno Rodrigues's 24th-minute strike put Famalicao on course for all three points, but Cassiano struck in the 91st minute to restore parity and force a share of the spoils.
Rui Silva's men have now failed to win any of their last three outings, claiming two draws and losing 2-1 at Vitoria de Guimaraes since seeing their three-game winning streak come to an end.
However, the Vila Nova will take pride in their recent form on home turf where they are unbeaten this year, claiming three wins and three draws since losing on penalties to Portimonense in the quarter-finals of the Taca de Portugal back in December.
Famalicao have won six, drawn 10 and lost 11 of their 27 games this season to collect 28 points and sit 12th in the Primeira Liga standings, one point and one place above Saturday's visitors.
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Elsewhere, Boavista saw their unbeaten run come to an end last time out when they were beaten 1-0 by title-chasing Porto at the Estadio do Bessa.
In a game where both sides were guilty of a wasteful display in front of goal, Fabio Vieira's 32nd-minute strike was enough to hand the Dragoes all three points and keep their six-point lead at the top of the table intact.
Prior to that, Petit's men were on a six-game unbeaten run, claiming five wins and one draw since a 2-1 defeat at the hands of Santa Clara on February 1.
While Boavista will be looking to return to winning ways and leapfrog the hosts in the standings, it is worth noting that they have managed just one win on the road this season and picked up nine points from an available 39.
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Team News
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Famalicao will take to the pitch without the services of Pedro Brazao after the 19-year-old midfielder received his marching orders against Vizela last time out.
On the injury front, the Vila Nova remain without several players down the spine of the team, including the likes of Ivo Rodrigues, Diogo Figueira, Ruben Lima and David Tavares.
Brazilian defender Alex is set to sit out his fourth consecutive game, while Spanish youngster Ivan Jamie has been sidelined since picking up a back problem in January's game against Arouca.
Meanwhile, Boavista will be without French midfielder Yanis Hamache, who sustained a muscle injury in the game against Belenenses on March 12.
He is joined on the Os Axadrezados injury table by fellow midfielder Miguel Reisinho, who has been sidelined since last August through a severe knee injury.
Twenty-eight-year-old forward Yusupha Njie and veteran defender Javi Garcia are major doubts for Boavista after the duo came off injured midway through the game against Porto just before the international break.
Famalicao possible starting lineup:
Junior; Penetra, Ricceli, Batubinsika; Marin, Pepe, Pikel, Fuente; Teixeira, B Rodrigues; Banza
Boavista possible starting lineup:
Bracali; Ferreira, Cannon, Porozo, Abascal, Santos; Makouta, Gorre, Sauer, Perez; Musa
We say: Famalicao 2-1 Boavista
With just one point between Famalicao and Boavista in the standings, we expect a thrilling contest with both sides taking the game to each other in search of all three points. Famalicao head into the game in stronger form and, given their recent run of results at home, we predict they will come away with maximum points.
Top tip
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 Famalicao win with a probability of 54.43%. A draw had a probability of 25.1% and a win for Boavista had a probability of 20.48%.
The most likely scoreline for a Famalicao win was 1-0 with a probability of 13.55%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-0 (10.8%) and 2-1 (9.41%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (11.79%), while for a Boavista win it was 0-1 (7.4%). The actual scoreline of 1-2 was predicted with a 5.1% likelihood.
