Fresh off the back of snapping their nine-game winless run across all competitions, Gil Vicente play host to Moreirense in round 28 of the Portuguese Primeira Liga on Sunday.
Os verdes e brancos, who are unbeaten in each of their last five top-flight visits to the Estadio Cidade de Barcelos since March 2015, will look to extend this 10-year streak as they set out in search of their first away win since October.
Match preview
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Gil Vicente picked up three huge points in their race to beat the drop as they cruised to a 3-1 victory over Boavista when the two sides squared off at the Estadio do Bessa on Tuesday.
Following a relatively uneventful first half, Brazilian forward Pablo Felipe turned in a stellar individual display as he hit three goals to put the visitors in a commanding lead before Robert Bozenik pulled one back for Boavista with a 96th-minute penalty.
This was a much-needed respite for Gil Vicente, who had failed to win any of their previous nine games across all competitions — losing eight and claiming one draw — a run which saw them crash out of the Taca de Portugal in the quarter-finals courtesy of a 1-0 home defeat against Sporting Lisbon in February.
Cesar Peixoto's men have won six of their 27 Primeira Liga matches this term while losing 13 and picking up eight draws to collect 26 points and sit 14th in the league standings, just three points above the dreaded bottom three.
While Gil Vicente will look to continue from where they left off against Boavista and pull clear of the danger zone, next up is the daunting challenge of taking on an opposing side who are unbeaten in 11 of their last 12 league encounters, claiming seven wins and four draws since February 2013.
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Over in Braga, Moreirense were denied consecutive victories for the first time since November as they could only salvage a 2-2 draw against Vitoria de Guimaraes last Sunday.
After falling behind to Guilherme Schettine's 31st-minute opener, Telmo Arcanjo took matters into his own hands as he struck twice to help Guimaraes turn the game on its head, but Bernardo Martins netted in the 77th minute to force a share of the spoils.
This followed a 1-0 victory over 10-man Boavista on March 16, when Brazilian forward Alan struck in the 31st minute to hand Os verdes e brancos all three points at the Parque de Jogos Comendador Joaquim de Almeida Freitas.
Cristiano Bacci's men have now gone unbeaten in each of their last four matches — claiming one win and three draws while scoring five goals and conceding four — having failed to win 10 of the 11 games preceding.
Moreirense have picked up 32 points from their 27 Primeira Liga matches so far to sit 10th in the league standings, five points behind Famalicao in the top half of the table.
While this weekend's visitors will be looking to return to winning ways at the Estadio Cidade de Barcelos this weekend, they have failed to win their last 10 away games across all competitions, losing eight and claiming two draws since October's 2-0 victory over Boavista.
Team News
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Gil Vicente will have to cope without the services of French striker Tidjany Toure, who will serve a one-game suspension after picking up a red card against Boavista last time out.
In his absence, Spanish forward Jorge Aguirre will push for a place in the Gilistas XI, forming the front three with Sergio Bermejo and 21-year-old Felipe, who has netted four goals in four league starts this season.
On the injury front, Peixoto will be unable to name South Africa international Sphephelo Sithole, who continues his lengthy spell on the sidelines after sustaining a ligament injury while on international duty against South Sudan in September.
As for Moreirense, the duo of Hernani Infande and 23-year-old midfielder Guilherme Liberato will play no part in this weekend's clash as they are recuperating from knee injuries.
Portuguese midfielder Sidnei Tavares is also out of contention for the visitors due to suspension after crossing the yellow card threshold with his booking against Vitoria de Guimaraes last time out.
Gil Vicente possible starting lineup:
Andrew; Ze Carlos, Mananga, Fernandes, Cruz; Bamba, Fujimoto, Caseres; Aguirre, Felipe, Bermejo
Moreirense possible starting lineup:
Kewin; Pinto, Marcelo, Maracas, Frimpong; Ismael, Ofori; Benny, Alanzinho, Teguia; Schettine
We say: Gil Vicente 2-1 Moreirense
Buoyed by their impressive victory over Boavista, Gil Vicente will head into the weekend with sky-high confidence as they take on a Moreirense side who have struggled for consistency. The Gilistas got the better of Bacci's men when the two sides met in the Taca de Portugal back in January and we are backing them to come away with the desired result in front of their home supporters once again.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Joshua Ojele
