Round nine of the Portuguese Primeira Liga gets underway on Friday when Gil Vicente and Estoril Praia go head to head at the Estadio Cidade de Barcelos.
The Gilistas head into the weekend on a run of four consecutive home games without a win across all competitions and will be looking to end this dry spell.
Match preview
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Gil Vicente continue to struggle for results as they fell to a 3-1 defeat at the hands of Sporting Lisbon when the sides squared off last Friday.
In a one-sided affair at the Estadio Jose Alvalade, Hidemasa Morita, Pedro Goncalves and Rochinha all found the back of the net to put the hosts in a comfortable lead before Fran Navarro grabbed a 93rd-minute consolation.
Gil Vicente are now winless in all but one of their last nine outings across all competitions, claiming three draws and losing five — with a 2-1 victory away to Maritimo on September 11 being the only exception.
This underwhelming run has been owing to their struggles at the defensive end of the pitch, where the Gilistas have allowed 17 goals in their last nine outings while managing just one clean sheet in that time.
Gil Vicente, who secured an impressive fifth-placed finish last term, have picked up two wins, three draws and lost three of their opening eight games this season to collect nine points and sit 11th in the Primeira Liga standings.
While Ivo Vieira's men will be looking to return to winning ways, they have struggled for results on home turf, where they are currently on a run of four games without a win, claiming two draws and losing twice since a 4-0 victory over Riga FC on August 11.
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Estoril Praia, on the other hand, were denied a third consecutive victory away from home as they could only salvage a 1-1 draw with newly-promoted Chaves last Saturday.
Spanish forward Hector Hernandez opened the scoring in the 39th minute to hand the home side a first-half lead but Rodrigo Martins restored parity with 14 minutes left to play at the Estadio Municipal Eng. Manuel Branco Teixeira.
Prior to that, Estoril Praia held league champions Porto to a 1-1 draw on September 17, despite going one man down in the 77th minute, as Tiago Gouveia and Mehdi Taremi scored for either side to force a share of the spoils.
The Canarinhos are currently on a three-game unbeaten run, claiming two draws and one win, while they are unbeaten in five of their last six outings, with their 2-0 loss to Sporting Lisbon on September 2 being the exception.
With 12 points from eight games, Nelson Verissimo's side are currently eighth in the league standings, but could potentially rise as high as fifth place with all three points this weekend.
Team News
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Gil Vicente will take to the pitch without the services of summer signing Lucas Barros, who picked up an injury while in action for Covilha in the Segunda Liga back in May.
Navarro has been a standout performer for the Gilistas this season and the Spanish forward, who has five goals and one assist in eight league games, should spearhead the attack once again.
Meanwhile, Estoril Praia will have to cope without Joao Carlos, who is set to sit out his fourth consecutive game through a muscle problem.
Veteran defender Joaozinho is a major doubt for Verissimo's side after the 33-year-old was forced off injured midway through the game against Chaves at the weekend.
However, Estoril Praia will be boosted by the return of Mor Ndiaye, who is now available for selection after serving his suspension for picking up a red card against Porto on September 17.
Gil Vicente possible starting lineup:
Andrew; Veiga, Ferrugem, Araujo, Marin; Fernandes, Fujimoto, Carvalho; Souza, Medina, Navarro
Estoril Praia possible starting lineup:
Figueira; Santos, Vital, Alvaro, Araujo; Geraldes, Carvalho; Gouveia, Rosier, Martins; Erison
We say: Gil Vicente 1-1 Estoril Praia
With each of the last five meetings between the sides ending all square, we expect another cagey affair at the Estadio Cidade de Barcelos this weekend. Both sides are evenly-matched on paper and we predict that the spoils will be shared once again.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Top tip
Joshua Ojele
