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

Still seeking their first victory of the 2026-27 Primeira Liga campaign, Alverca welcome Santa Clara to Ribatejo for matchday four action on Saturday afternoon.

The hosts have managed just one point from their opening three fixtures of the campaign, leaving them 15th in the Portuguese top-flight table, whereas the visitors from the Azores are fourth after collecting seven points from a possible nine.

Match preview

Alverca have had little luck with their fixtures in the early stages of the season, having faced both of last term’s top two in their opening three games, including last weekend’s 3-1 away defeat against Sporting Lisbon.

The Ribatejo outfit found themselves three goals down at the hour mark in that encounter at Estadio Jose Alvalade, leaving Figueiredo’s late strike as nothing more than a consolation and extending a difficult start to life under Sergio Ferreira.

The new manager, who replaced Custodio Castro in June, had seen his side suffer an opening-day loss to defending champions Porto before a matchday two draw with Estrela Amadora, and Alverca are now at risk of matching last term’s four-game winless start.

The Ribatejo club managed just one point from their first four matches in 2025-26, when they returned to the top flight after more than two decades away, and while finishing 11th in that campaign marked an impressive feat, another slip-up here would raise concerns about an early-season survival battle.

Heading into this weekend’s encounter, Alverca can at least draw encouragement from the fact that they have suffered just one loss in their last 10 league matches at home (W4, D5), winning two of the last four in that stretch.

Meanwhile, Santa Clara look like a side in resurgence, following up their disappointing 13th-place finish last term with a bright start to the new campaign, having bounced back from an opening-day slip-up to winning back-to-back games.

After relinquishing a two-goal lead to settle for a point with Nacional on matchday one, the Azoreans have now recorded consecutive 1-0 victories away at newly promoted Academico de Viseu and against Famalicao.

Last weekend’s triumph against the Vila Nova club reflected Santa Clara’s ability to grind out results even without controlling possession, with Petit’s men having just 32% of the ball and Goncalo Paciencia’s 22nd-minute close-range effort proving decisive.

Another such result this weekend would see the Azoreans record three consecutive victories for the first time since March 8 and 23, when they beat Vitoria de Guimaraes, AVS and Gil Vicente while keeping clean sheets.

Santa Clara can also record back-to-back away league wins for the first time since August 2024, although they are winless in their last three visits to Alverca (D1, L2), including a 1-1 draw in February that saw them pick up four points across both meetings last season.

Alverca Primeira Liga form:

Santa Clara Primeira Liga form:

Team News

Alverca suffered another fitness concern in their game last weekend, with Vivaldo Semedo doubtful for Saturday after the forward took a knock to his left thigh against Sporting and had to be substituted.

Bastien Meupiyou was also forced off on matchday two and could miss consecutive outings, while Julian Martinez and Sabit Abdulai remain long-term absentees as they recover from knee problems.

Meanwhile, midfielder Chiquinho will complete his two-match suspension in this encounter following his red card against Estrela Amadora and will remain unavailable for the Ribatejo club.

That said, Alverca have made two new additions to the squad following the signings of Eyimofe Jemide and Ze Rafael, although it remains to be seen if either will feature this weekend.

Santa Clara will remain without Matheus Araujo, who continues his recovery from the cruciate ligament injury he sustained last season, while Joao Costa’s availability is uncertain.

Paciencia has now scored in each of the opening three fixtures of the campaign, including back-to-back match-winning goals, and the forward will aim to add to his tally of four goals in the Primeira Liga this weekend.

Alverca possible starting lineup:

Mateus; James, Bojang, Baseya; Touaizi, Gui, Luccas, Chissumba; Vidigal, Figueiredo; Merheg

Santa Clara possible starting lineup:

Franca; Calila, Pacheco, Moreira, Romao; Ferreira, Tavares; Vinicius, Borges, Sorriso; Paciencia

We say: Alverca 1-1 Santa Clara

Santa Clara have shown good defensive organisation and appear to be the team in better form, so we expect them to take something from this encounter even if their recent visits to Alverca have not been straightforward.

The hosts have shown resilience on their own turf since returning to the top flight, with their five home league defeats coming against sides that finished in the top six last term, making this encounter more balanced than the form suggests, so a draw is feasible.

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