Rio Ave will be looking to snap their three-game winless run in the Primeira Liga when they go head to head with Nacional in their final home game of the year on Sunday.
The Alvinegros, who have failed to win any of their last five visits to the Estadio dos Arcos, will head into the weekend looking to end this run and secure their first away win of the campaign.
Match preview
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Rio Ave were denied a cheerful Christmas season as they suffered a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Estrela Amadora when the two sides squared off at the Estadio Jose Gomes on Monday.
Twenty-year-old Tiago Gabriel opened his account for the season in the 36th minute to break the deadlock before Estrela turned in a solid defensive display in the second half to see out their fourth league win of the campaign.
With that result, Petit's men have now failed to taste victory in three consecutive games, picking up just one point from a possible nine, and have lost seven of their eight away matches in the league this season — the division's second fewest points on the road (3).
Rio Ave have made up for their woeful form on the road back home, where they are one of just three sides yet to suffer defeat in the Primeira Liga this term, claiming three wins and four draws from their seven matches at the Estadio dos Arcos so far.
With the 2024-25 Primeira Liga campaign approaching its midway point, the Vilacondenses currently sit 11th in the league table with 16 points from 15 matches, four points above the bottom three but could move level with ninth-placed Famalicao with a win this weekend.
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Nacional, on the other hand, failed to pull clear of the danger zone as they could only salvage a 2-2 draw against Vitoria de Guimaraes at the Estadio Dom Afonso Henriques on Monday.
In an action-packed contest, Tiago Silva and Nuno Santos hit the target to cancel out Isaac's seventh-minute opener and put Guimaraes in front, but Joao Aurelio netted in the 93rd minute to force a share of the spoils.
While head coach Tiago Margarido will be impressed with his side's resilient display at the Estadio Dom Afonso Henriques, they have failed to win five of their last six matches while claiming just two victories from 13 outings in all competitions since the first week of September.
This run has seen the Estadio dos Arcos crash out of both domestic cup competitions as they were beaten 2-1 by Uniao Leiria in the Taca de Portugal third round on October 20, nine days before suffering a 3-1 defeat at the hands of Sporting Lisbon in the Taca da Liga quarter-finals.
Having returned to the top flight this season, it has been a difficult first half of the campaign for Nacional, who have picked up 13 points from their 15 Primeira Liga matches to sit 15th in the table, just two points above rock-bottom Arouca.
Team News
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Rio Ave will have to cope without Benfica loanee Martim Neto, who is currently suspended after picking up a red card after being subbed off against Estrela last time out.
In his absence, Moroccan midfielder Amine Oudrhiri will push for his ninth start of the campaign, teaming up with Ege Tiknaz and 31-year-old Joao Novais in the centre of the park.
On the injury front, this weekend's hosts remain without English defender Jonathan Panzo, who has missed each of the last seven games since picking up a knee injury against Benfica back in October.
Nacional will also head into the final game of the year without the services of Brazilian defender Ze Vitor, who is suspended after crossing the yellow card threshold with his booking against Guimaraes last time out.
Nigel Thomas missed the aforementioned game through injury and the 23-year-old forward is a doubt for this weekend's clash while Spanish midfielder Miguel Baeza is also out of contention for the visitors.
Rio Ave possible starting lineup:
Miszta; Vrousai, William, Santos, Richards; Tiknaz, Oudrhiri, Novais; Bondoso, Clayton, Aguilera
Nacional possible starting lineup:
Franca; Garcia, Santos, Ulisses, Gomes; Esteves, Soumare, Costa; Appiah, Isaac, Teodora
We say: Rio Ave 1-0 Nacional
Rio Ave and Nacional have struggled for consistency this season and find themselves scrambling for points in the bottom half of the table heading into the midway point of the season. However, the Vilacondenses have proven tough to crack at home this season and we predict that they will come away with the desired results, albeit by the odd goal.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Joshua Ojele
