Atletico Goianiense come into their eighth match of the Campeonato Brasileiro Serie A in search of their first road victory of the domestic campaign as they take on Internacional on Monday at Estadio Beira-Rio.
Heading into this encounter, Colorado are unbeaten in their previous 11 games in all competitions, while Dragao are in early relegation danger sitting in 17th, two points behind Cuiaba for top-flight salvation.
Match preview
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Over their previous couple of domestic campaigns, Internacional have been near the middle of the table, and that is where they find themselves after seven matches this season, currently in a four-way tie for eighth with 10 points.
Mano Menezes will be pleased that his side continue to earn points, although the former Brazilian national team boss knows that they could be a lot higher up in the standings.
Club do Povo have squandered four points from winning positions this season, points that could see them tied with Corinthians for first place.
Menezes has always liked to play an aggressive, up-tempo style, reliant on a dynamic number 10 playmaker, but so far this year, it is unknown who on this team can take on that responsibility.
They have looked great at home in 2022, losing only one match in all competitions, conceding a goal or fewer in all but one of those games.
Coming off an impressive 5-1 victory over 9 de Octobre in their final Copa Sudamericana group stage match on Tuesday should give them plenty of confidence heading into a difficult stretch of domestic affairs, in which they face Bragantino, Santos and Flamengo.
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If there was one word which could describe the early struggles of Atletico Goianiense to begin this domestic campaign, consistency comes to mind.
The club from Goiania have not incurred a losing run of longer than one game, however, they have only collected one victory in the league after seven matches, when they scored late in the first and second half to defeat Coritiba 2-0 a week ago.
Top-flight football in Brazil can be a cut-throat, where a couple of losses can cost you your job, and Umberto Louzer was sacked after failing to win his first six domestic fixtures at the helm of Goianiense.
His dismissal seems to have brought more harmony and freedom to this group, who are unbeaten in their last three matches played in all competitions.
Jorginho is back in charge, and it seems as though his second stint has reinvigorated a group who are making the most out of their scoring chances with three goals on their last five efforts on target.
The former World Cup winner with Brazil in 1994 has a history of turning clubs into stingy defensive units, as his previous team, Cuiaba conceded the third-fewest goals in the Brasileiro Serie A last season (37) in what was their inaugural campaign in the top flight.
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Team News
Rodrigo Dourado continues to search for his first goal of this domestic campaign for Rolo Compressor, and he should be brimming with confidence after scoring a hat-trick in their 5-1 win at the Copa Sudamericana this week, while Carlos De Pena scored from the penalty spot to earn his side a draw versus Cuiaba (1-1).
De Pena is second in the league when it comes to assists with two, one fewer than Raphael Veiga and Giorgian De Arrascaeta, while goalkeeper Daniel has two clean sheets in this domestic campaign and Alexandre Alemao leads them with two goals so far.
We saw a few new faces to the starting 11 for Internacional on Tuesday from the team that began the match versus Cuiaba, as Bruno Mendez, Rene, Dourado, De Pena and Mauricio replaced Moises, Gabriel Mercado, Gabriel, Liziero and Alan Patrick.
A goal from midfielder Jorginho de Moura Xavier, along with a tally by Airton, gave Dragao their first domestic victory of the campaign last weekend.
Ronaldo made six saves to collect his first clean sheet in that encounter, as he has conceded multiple goals only once since replacing Luan Polli as the starting goalkeeper.
Hayner leads them in assists this season with two, with Dudu the only other person to set up a goal for them domestically.
They are still looking to get Marlon Freitas going as he has yet to be involved in a goal in this campaign after scoring and assisting three times over the 2021 Brasileiro season.
Goianiense made one change to their starting 11 versus LDU Quito compared to the team, which began in their victory over Coritiba as Leo Pereira replaced Luiz Fernando in midfield.
Internacional possible starting lineup:
Daniel; Moises, Mercado, Vitao, Heitor; Wanderson, Gabriel, Edenilson; Patrick, Dourado; David
Atletico Goianiense possible starting lineup:
Ronaldo; Hayner, Noga, Ramon, Jefferson; Freitas, Fernando; Shaylon, Jorginho, Lima; Rato
We say: Internacional 1-1 Atletico Goianiense
Five of the 10 matches between these sides since 2010 have ended in draws, and we expect the same in this encounter, as Goianiense are still feeling the positive effects that a new coach can bring to a team while also looking a lot more organised and compact at the back.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Top tip
Joel Lefevre
