Famalicao will look to continue their climb away from the bottom three of the Primeira Liga table on Sunday, when they welcome Pacos de Ferreira to the Municipal Stadium Famalicao.
The hosts have climbed up to 14th spot thanks to an upturn in form prior to the international break, while Pacos de Ferreira will be hoping to further strengthen their spot in the top five with a second consecutive league win.
Match preview
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Famalicao will come into this game with a degree of confidence, having picked up eight points from their last six games before the international break.
During that run, manager Silas departed the club after a 3-0 defeat to fellow strugglers Boavista, leaving the side second-from bottom, and Ivo Vieira was brought in with the objective of saving Fama from relegation.
He has had a strong start to life at his new club, having picked up four points from his first two games.
Last time out, Fama recorded an eye-catching 4-0 victory away at Maritimo, as Ivo Rodrigues and Anderson netted two goals each.
Before that, Vieira picked up a commendable point in his first game at the helm, as they drew 2-2 away at third-placed Braga.
Anderson put them ahead after 18 minutes, but Os Arcebispos would go on to take a 2-1 lead through Ricardo Horta and Ali Musrati, before Heriberto Tavares netted a late equaliser to seal a crucial point for his side.
Famalicao will be hoping to continue their upturn in form on Sunday, but that will not be straightforward, as they welcome fifth-placed Pacos de Ferreira who have won three of their last five league games.
Pepa's side recorded a dominant victory in the last game before the international break, as Douglas Tanque, Luther Singh and Helder Ferreira fired them to a 3-0 home win over eighth-placed Moreirense.
Os Castores now sit in fifth spot in the Portuguese top flight, with a nine-point gap between themselves and fifth-placed Vitoria de Guimaraes, as they look to seal European qualification for next season.
Pepa will be somewhat concerned about his side's away form though, having lost their last three league games on their travels, although two of those defeats did come against league leaders Sporting Lisbon and second-placed Porto.
Os Castores will be looking to put an end to that poor away run in this game, as they take on a Famalicao side who have won just one of their 12 league games on home turf so far this season.
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Team News
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Famalicao should come into this game with a fairly healthy squad, with only midfielder Bruno Jordao expected to remain out with an injury.
They were boosted by the return of midfielder Manuel Ugarte last time out, after he served a suspension for a red card.
He could form a dynamic three-man midfield with Gustavo Assuncao and Pedro Rodrigues, who has been a key player since his loan move from Olympiacos.
Anderson will lead the line for Fama, having netted three goals in the last two games.
Pacos de Ferreira will be without important winger Luther Singh for this game, as he will serve a suspension after being shown his fifth yellow card of the season last time out.
In his absence, Ze Uilton could come into the side, forming a threatening front three alongside Helder Ferreira and Douglas Tanque, with both players netting goals in the recent win over Maritimo.
Famalicao possible starting lineup:
Junior; Figueiras, Ricielli, Babic, Vinagre; Ugarte, Assuncao, P. Rodrigues; Dias, Anderson, I. Rodrigues
Pacos de Ferreira possible starting lineup:
Jordi; Fonseca, Marcelo, Gonzaga, Rebocho; Carlos, Eustaquio, Costa; Ferreira, Tanque, Uilton
We say: Famalicao 1-2 Pacos de Ferreira
This could turn out to be a very tough game to predict considering Famalicao's upturn in form, but we would expect the visitors to secure a narrow victory thanks to their slightly superior quality across the board.
Vieira's side have definitely shown major improvements since his appointment, but we would not be surprised if they fell just short on Sunday, while still giving a good account of themselves.
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 38.09%. A win for Pacos de Ferreira had a probability of 33.36% and a draw had a probability of 28.5%.
The most likely scoreline for a Famalicao win was 1-0 with a probability of 12.21%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-1 (7.86%) and 2-0 (7.23%). The likeliest Pacos de Ferreira win was 0-1 (11.23%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (13.28%). The actual scoreline of 2-0 was predicted with a 7.2% likelihood. Our data analysis correctly predicted that Famalicao would win this match.
