Looking to end their seven-game winless run, Maritimo take a trip to the Estadio Dom Afonso Henriques to square off against Vitoria de Guimaraes on Friday.
The hosts head into the game on a two-game winning streak and will be looking to keep the juggernaut rolling and strengthen their position in the top half of the Primeira Liga table.
Match preview
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Vitoria de Guimaraes returned to winning ways in their last league outing when they fought back from one goal down to claim a 2-1 win over Famalicao at the Estadio Municipal de Famalicao.
After Lens loanee Simon Banza put the hosts ahead inside the opening five minutes, Oscar Estupinan restored parity shortly after the half-hour mark before Marcus Edwards netted in the 59th minute to turn the game around.
Prior to that, Pepa's men saw their seven-game unbeaten run come to an end when they suffered a 3-1 defeat at the hands of Benfica, where Roman Yaremchuk hit a first-half brace in a brilliant individual performance.
Vitoria head into Friday's game fresh off progressing into the fourth round of the Taca de Portugal courtesy of a 1-0 win over third-tier Oliveira Hospital when the sides faced off last Saturday.
Os Vimaranenses, who are currently seventh in the Primeira Liga standings, are unbeaten in all but one of their most recent 10 games across all competitions, picking up five wins and four draws in that time.
Their fine performance in the league has been in no small part owing to their sturdiness at the defensive end of the pitch, where they have shipped just seven goals so far, with only Benfica, Porto, Sporting Lisbon and Portimonense conceding more.
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On the other hand, Maritimo's rough start to the season continued last time out as they crashed out of the Taca de Portugal after losing on penalties against Varzim.
Following a 1-1 draw in regular time, Murilo Freitas and Rafik Guitane scored for either side in extra time before the Segunda Liga outfit claimed a 3-2 win on penalties.
Prior to that, Maritimo held Moreirense to an uneventful goalless draw in their last league outing, where Miguel Silva put on an inspiring performance between the sticks as he made several saves to repel the Os verdes e brancos' attackers.
Julio Velazquez's side have now failed to taste victory in any of their seven outings in all competitions, picking up four draws and losing three since a 2-1 win over Belenenses back in August.
Maritimo are currently 13th on the log, two points above the relegation places and this has been down to their misfiring frontmen, who have netted the third-fewest goals in the division to date with six.
While they will be looking to end this dry spell, they face the daunting task of going up against an opposing side who are unbeaten in each of the most recent six encounters between the sides, dating back to a 3-2 win back in February 2018.
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Team News
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Pepa will be unable to call upon the services of Ghanaian midfielder Joseph Amoah, who is currently recuperating from a long-term ankle injury.
He is joined on the Vitoria injury table by Czech Republic goalkeeper Matous Trmal, who has missed the last two outings through a back injury.
Oscar Estupinan and Marcus Edwards took their goal tally to two with their strikes against Famalicao on October 1 and we expect the duo to handle business at the attacking end of the pitch once again.
Maritimo, meanwhile, will take to the pitch without the services of 27-year-old forward Joel Tagueu, who picked up a thigh problem against Braga in this season's opener back in August.
First-choice goalkeeper Paulo Victor could start in goal after serving a one-game suspension for receiving his marching orders against Sporting Lisbon, while Italian forward Stefano Beltrame made his first appearance of the season last time out having recovered from a fractured collarbone injury he sustained back in May.
Vitoria de Guimaraes possible starting lineup:
Varela; Sacko, Mumin, Borevkovic, Soares; Ferreira, Semedo, Andre; Edwards, Estupinan, Rochinha
Maritimo possible starting lineup:
Victor; China, Leo, Junior, Winck; Rossi, Pelagio, Rossi; Xadas, Alipour; Beltrame
We say: Vitoria de Guimaraes 2-1 Maritimo
Vitoria de Guimaraes head into the game in fine form and will be seeking to kick on and strengthen their position in the top half of the table. We anticipate they will continue their dominance in this fixture and claim all three points as Maritimo are yet to hit their stride this season.
Top tip
Joshua Ojele
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 Vitoria de Guimaraes win with a probability of 50.42%. A draw had a probability of 26.5% and a win for Maritimo had a probability of 23.06%.
The most likely scoreline for a Vitoria de Guimaraes win was 1-0 with a probability of 13.8%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-0 (10.11%) and 2-1 (9.07%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (12.38%), while for a Maritimo win it was 0-1 (8.45%). The actual scoreline of 2-1 was predicted with a 9.1% likelihood. Our data analysis correctly predicted that Vitoria de Guimaraes would win this match.
