Having both secured their place in the quarter-finals of the Taca de Portugal last time out, Sporting Lisbon and Portimonense square off at the Estadio Jose Alvalade in round 16 of the Primeira Liga on Wednesday.
The hosts are currently level on points with Porto at the top of the league standings, while the visitors could move into the Conference League qualification places with all three points.
Match preview
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With the first half of the 2021-22 Primeira Liga campaign rounding off, Sporting Lisbon will be thrilled with their performance so far as they find themselves level on points with Porto at the top of the league standings.
Ruben Amorim's side, who ended their 19-year wait for the league trophy last season, have picked up 13 wins and two draws from their 15 games so far and look determined to defend their title.
Sporting Lisbon head into Wednesday's game on a blistering run of 10 wins on the trot, stretching back to November's 1-1 draw with title-chasing Porto, while they are one of just two sides yet to taste defeat in the league.
Their defensive sturdiness has been one of their major areas of strength so far as they boast the division's meanest record with just five goals conceded, while they have scored 27 at the opposite end of the pitch.
Sporting Lisbon secured their place in the quarter-finals of the Taca de Portugal last time out when they came from behind to secure a 2-1 victory over Segunda Liga side Casa Pia courtesy of goals from Sebastian Coates and Pablo Sarabia.
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Similarly, Portimonense continued their fine string of performances as they progressed into the last eight of the cup competition last Tuesday when they saw off a spirited Famalicao side on penalties at the Estadio Municipal de Famalicao.
After falling behind to Aylton Boa Morte's first-half strike, Famalicao upped the ante after the break and drew level through Bruno Rodrigues's 82nd-minute goal, and with nothing to separate the sides after 120 minutes, the game progressed to penalties where the visitors claimed a 4-2 win.
Portimonense now turn their sights to the Primeira Liga where they were denied their second consecutive win for just the second time this season last time out courtesy of a 1-1 draw with Arouca.
However, Paulo Sergio will be impressed by his side's recent performances as they head into Wednesday's game unbeaten in six of their last seven games across all competitions, claiming five wins and one draw in that time.
With 24 points from 15 games, Portimonense are currently sixth on the log and could rise into the Conference League qualification places with a win as they sit one point behind fifth-place Estoril Praia.
To do so, Os Alvinegros must overcome the daunting task of facing a rampant Sporting Lisbon side who are unbeaten in each of their last seven encounters, claiming six wins and one draw since 2-0 defeat back in 2016.
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Team News
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Sporting Lisbon have several concerns at the defensive end of the pitch as they remain without Wolverhampton Wanderers loanee Ruben Vinagre, who has been out of action since early November through an ankle injury.
Zouhair Feddal hobbled off the pitch with a muscle problem 10 minutes after the interval in the game against Benfica on December 3 and the 32-year-old is out of contention for Wednesday's game.
Veteran defender Luis Neto will also play no part for the reigning champions as the 33-year-old is suspended after receiving an early bath in the game against Gil Vicente two Saturdays ago.
While the duo of Paulinho and Ricardo Esgaio have been given the green light to feature for the hosts after recovering from COVID-19, Jovane Cabral continues his spell on the sidelines through a knee problem.
Portimonense remain without the services of Moroccan defender Achraf Lazar, who has been sidelined since sustaining a severe injury in September's 2-1 win over Santa Clara.
Shoya Nakajima, who is currently on loan from Porto, was a forced substitute in the game against Moreirense on December 12 after picking up a muscle problem and the 27-year-old is set to sit out his third consecutive game.
Sporting Lisbon possible starting lineup:
Adan; Coates, Inacio, Reis; Esgaio, Braganca, Ugarte, Nunes; Goncalves, Sarabia; Paulinho
Portimonense possible starting lineup:
Samuel; Possignolo, Pedrao, Rocha; Cande, Fernandes, Carlinhos, Luquinha; Morte, Aponza, Fabricio
We say: Sporting Lisbon 2-0 Portimonense
Portimonense head into the game without a win in any of their last seven meetings against Sporting Lisbon and will be looking to end that dry spell. However, the Leoes have won each of their last nine home games and appear simply unstoppable at the moment. Looking at the gulf in class and quality between the two sides, we are backing Sporting to come away with all three 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 Sporting Lisbon win with a probability of 74.99%. A draw had a probability of 17.2% and a win for Portimonense had a probability of 7.85%.
The most likely scoreline for a Sporting Lisbon win was 2-0 with a probability of 15.72%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 1-0 (14.57%) and 3-0 (11.31%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (7.83%), while for a Portimonense win it was 0-1 (3.63%). The actual scoreline of 3-2 was predicted with a 1.6% likelihood. Our team at Sports Mole and our data analysis both correctly predicted that Sporting Lisbon would win this match.
