Aiming to move top of the Primeira Liga standings, Sporting Lisbon take a trip to the Estadio Cidade de Barcelos to lock horns with Gil Vicente on Saturday.
The hosts, meanwhile, head into the game on a two-game winning run and will be seeking to get one over the visitors having lost each of the last four meetings between the sides.
Match preview
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Gil Vicente made it two wins from two for the first time since August when they edged out Pacos de Ferreira 1-0 last Friday.
It was late drama at the Estadio Capital do Movel as substitute Antoine Leautey grabbed the only goal of the game in the 95th minute to hand the hosts their fifth straight defeat in all competitions.
This followed an emphatic 4-0 victory over struggling Famalicao on December 5 which saw their run of three games without a win come to an end.
After securing an 11th-placed finish last season, Gil Vicente can be delighted by their performance this term as they are currently eighth in the Primeira Liga standings, four points off Estoril Praia in the final Conference League qualification spot.
This has been owing to their impressive displays away from home, where they boast the division's sixth-best record with 12 points from seven games, and their free-scoring attackers, who have netted 20 goals so far.
While Ricardo Soares's men will be aiming to keep the ball rolling, next up is the daunting task of going up against the reigning champions, who have won 11 of the last 14 meetings between the sides, including each of the most recent four.
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Meanwhile, Sporting Lisbon maintained their perfect record in Group B of the Taca de Liga as they claimed a 1-0 win over Penafiel last Tuesday.
In a cagey affair at the Estadio Municipal 25 de Abril, Portuguese youngster Tiago Tomas came up trumps for the Leoes as he netted the only goal of the game shortly after the quarter-hour mark.
Ruben Amorim's side now turn their attention to the Primeira Liga, where they have kicked off their title defence on a good note and sit at the top of the pile, level on 38 points with Porto.
Sporting Lisbon head into Saturday's game on a blistering nine-game winning streak in the league and are yet to taste defeat so far, claiming 12 wins and two draws from their opening 14 games.
This has been in no small part down to the solid job done at both ends of the pitch as they boast the league's meanest defence with just five goals conceded, while scoring 24 at the opposite end of the pitch.
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Team News
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Soares will be unable to call upon the services of Brazilian midfielder Joao Afonso, who continues his long journey to full fitness after sustaining a severe injury back in April.
With his winner against Pacos de Ferreira last time out, Antoine Leautey now has three goal involvements in his last three games and the French midfielder will be one to look out for on Saturday.
The visitors, on the other hand, head into the game with several injury concerns down the spine of the team.
The Portuguese duo of Ruben Vinagre and Joao Palhinha have been ruled out through ankle and muscle injuries respectively, while Jovane Cabral is out with a knee problem.
Zouhair Feddal and Pedro Porro are both out with muscle problems, while Paulinho and Ricardo Esgaio will play no part in the game after testing positive for COVID-19.
Gil Vicente possible starting lineup:
Frelih; Hackman, Silva, Fernandes, Talocha; Aburjania, Pedrinho, Fujimoto; Murilo, Navarro, Lino
Sporting Lisbon possible starting lineup:
Adan; Inacio, Neto, Reis; Esteves, Braganca, Ugarte, Nunes; Goncalves, Santos, Sarabia
We say: Gil Vicente 0-2 Sporting Lisbon
Gil Vicente have enjoyed a fine campaign so far and will be looking to pick up their third consecutive win for the first time this season and strengthen their position in the top half of the standings. However, they face the stern test of taking on a rampant Sporting Lisbon side, who have won each of the last four meetings between the sides. We are backing Sporting Lisbon to extend their dominance in this fixture and claim all three points.
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 Sporting Lisbon win with a probability of 52.36%. A draw had a probability of 24.5% and a win for Gil Vicente had a probability of 23.17%.
The most likely scoreline for a Sporting Lisbon win was 0-1 with a probability of 11.48%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 1-2 (9.63%) and 0-2 (9.5%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (11.63%), while for a Gil Vicente win it was 1-0 (7.04%). The actual scoreline of 0-3 was predicted with a 5.2% likelihood. Our team at Sports Mole and our data analysis both correctly predicted that Sporting Lisbon would win this match.
