Preview: Alverca vs Santa Clara - prediction, team news, lineups

Out to end a run of five consecutive defeats and begin their surge from the doldrums, Santa Clara take on Alverca at the Complexo Desportivo FC Alverca in round 23 of the Portuguese Primeira Liga on Saturday.

While the home side have failed to taste victory in four straight games, they sit eight points clear of the danger zone and could move within two points of the top half of the standings with a win this weekend.

Match preview

While Alverca's performance at home deserves credit, their struggle on the road continues to undermine them, with the Lisbon outfit playing out a 1-1 stalemate with Tondela last Friday after giving up their lead with 10 minutes left to play.

In a game where Bastien Meupiyou received his marching orders, Marko Milovanovic put the visitors in front with a fourth-minute strike at the Estadio Joao Cardoso, but substitute Joao Silva hit back for Tondela in the 80th minute to force a share of the spoils.

With that result, Alverca have failed to taste victory in five consecutive away games, a slump which has seen them pick up just one point from a possible 15 since the start of December, while managing just one win in nine across all competitions on the road since October 18.

With home comfort awaiting, Custodio Castro will be confident of a reaction from his side this weekend, having picked up five wins and two draws from nine matches at the Complexo Desportivo since the start of September — a run which has seen them strengthen their position in the mid-tables.

In what has been an impressive return to the top flight after over 20 years away, Alverca have picked up seven wins from their 22 league games while losing 11 and claiming four draws to collect 25 points and sit 10th in the Primeira Liga table, five points behind ninth-placed Estoril.

On the other hand, two games on since the managerial reshuffle, Santa Clara continue to drop important points at the wrong end of the table as they fell to a 2-1 defeat against Benfica at the Estadio de Sao Miguel last Friday.

With Lucas Soares being sent off in the dying minutes of the tie, a close-range header from Vangelis Pavlidis and Paulo Victor’s 38th-minute own goal put Benfica two goals up heading into half time before Goncalo Paciencia pulled one back for the hosts in the 47th minute.

With that result, Santa Clara have now gone 10 straight games without a win and have lost each of their last five outings, including consecutive defeats against Estrela Amadora and Benfica since Petit’s takeover at the helm of affairs.

A series of blunt displays and lack of ruthlessness in front of goal underline their struggles this season, with the Azoreans netting just 17 goals in their 22 league matches — only fellow strugglers Tondela (15) have managed fewer.

Having secured a fifth-placed finish in the Primeira Liga table last term, Santa Clara have managed just four wins from their 22 games so far while losing 13 and claiming five draws to collect 17 points and sit 16th in the table, three points behind 15th-placed Rio Ave just above the relegation zone.

Alverca Primeira Liga form:

Santa Clara Primeira Liga form:

Team News

Alverca head into the weekend without several players down the spine of the team, as the likes of Stephane Diarra (muscle), Leo Chu (knee) and Spanish midfielder Tomas Mendes (muscle) continue their spells on the sidelines.

Francisco Chissumba was forced off injured late in the game against Tondela last time out and is a major doubt for this weekend’s clash, while Ghanaian midfielder Sabit Abdulai is set to sit out his third straight match since coming off injured against Estrela in January.

Meupiyou is currently suspended after picking up a red card against Tondela last weekend, while Moroccan forward Nabil Touaizi is set to serve a one-game ban after crossing the yellow card threshold with his booking in the aforementioned game.

As for Santa Clara, Brazilian full-back Soares will sit out this weekend’s tie due to suspension after receiving his marching orders in the game against Benfica last time out.

On the injury front, the Azoreans remain without the services of 24-year-old defender Matheus Araujo, who has been ruled out since coming off injured against Arouca on December 21.

Alverca possible starting lineup:

Gomes; Naves, Gomez, Martinez; Gui, Moreira, Rhaldney, Nuozzi; Figueiredo, Clairicia, Chiquinho

Santa Clara possible starting lineup:

Batista; Calila, Venancio, Lima, Victor; Araujo, Klismahn, Ferreira; Lopes, Paciencia, Silva

We say: Alverca 2-1 Santa Clara

While Santa Clara will be desperate to stop the rot and kickstart their push to safety, they will need to show their mettle at the Complexo Desportivo, where Castro's men have proven tough to crack this season.

The Azoreans have picked up just six points from a possible 30 on the road so far, and while we expect them to put up a fight on Saturday, we are backing Alverca to come away with a narrow victory.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.