Looking to pick up successive Primeira Liga wins for the first time since last July and move out of the relegation zone, Belenenses visit the Estadio Antonio Coimbra da Mota to face Estoril Praia on Sunday.
Bruno Pinheiro's side, on the other hand, head into the game without a win in any of their last four outings and will be aiming to end this dry spell.
Match preview
© Reuters
Estoril Praia turned in a resilient display in the Primeira Liga last Monday when they held fourth-placed Braga to a goalless draw on home turf.
Despite seeing 64 percent of the ball possession, Carlos Carvalhal's side were guilty of a wasteful display in front of goal as they failed to tuck home their chances before settling for a share of the spoils.
Prior to that, the Canarinhos were on a run of three consecutive defeats, losing to Benfica, Vizela and Santa Clara, while scoring twice and conceding six goals in that time.
With 35 points from 30 games, Estoril Praia are currently ninth in the Primeira Liga standings, level on points with 10th-placed Santa Clara, but could rise as high as seventh with all three points on Sunday.
© Reuters
Belenenses, meanwhile, kept their survival chances alive as they claimed a hard-fought 1-0 victory over Vizela when the sides squared off horns last Saturday.
Despite being on the back foot for most of the game, Yves Baraye came up trumps for O Belem as he scored the only goal of the game at the Estadio do Restelo to send the visitors back home empty-handed.
Franclim Carvalho's men are unbeaten in all but one of their last six games — claiming two wins and three draws — with a 3-1 defeat at the hands of Benfica on April 9 being the only exception.
While Belenenses remain rooted to the bottom of the league standings with 24 points from 30 games, a win on Sunday could see them leave the automatic relegation places as they sit two points off Moreirense in the playoff spot.
While the Lisbon-based outfit will look to build on their victory over the Vizelenenses and surge from the drop zone, they will have to put an end to their poor run on the road, where they are yet to taste victory this season and hold the division's worst record with just six points from 15 games.
- D
- W
- L
- L
- L
- D
- D
- D
- D
- W
- L
- W
Team News
© Reuters
Pinheiro will be unable to call upon the services of French youngster Ruben Providence as the 20-year-old continues his lengthy spell on the sidelines through an ankle problem.
He is joined on the Estoril Praia injury table by Brazilian defender Lucas Africo, who picked up a knee injury last November.
Meanwhile, Belenenses will be without 23-year-old midfielder Chico Teixeira, who has been out of action since last September through a knee problem.
Baraye ended an eight-game goal drought with his strike against Vizela last time out and we expect the former Gil Vicente man to team up with Safira and Rafael Camacho in attack.
Estoril Praia possible starting lineup:
Figueira; Soria, Ferraresi, Silva, Joaozinho; Gamboa, Geraldes; Gomes, Franco, Mboula; Ruiz
Belenenses possible starting lineup:
Felipe; Carraca, Danny, Phete, Calila; Baraye, Sithole, Braima; Camacho, Safira, Baraye
We say: Estoril Praia 1-2 Belenenses
Estoril Praia will be backing themselves to come away with the desired results against a Belenenses side who have yet to pick up a win away from home this season. However, we predict O Belem will build on last week's victory over the Vizelenenses and claim a slender victory.
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 Estoril Praia win with a probability of 50.78%. A draw had a probability of 25.3% and a win for Belenenses had a probability of 23.89%.
The most likely scoreline for a Estoril Praia win was 1-0 with a probability of 12.14%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-0 (9.52%) and 2-1 (9.43%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (12.02%), while for a Belenenses win it was 0-1 (7.67%). The actual scoreline of 2-2 was predicted with a 4.7% likelihood.
