Preview: Moreirense vs Estoril Praia - prediction, team news, lineups

Moreirense and Estoril Praia continue their push for a top-half finish in the Portuguese Primeira Liga when they square off at the Parque de Jogos Comendador Joaquim de Almeida Freitas on Monday.

Having failed to taste victory in the last five meetings between the two teams since May 2022, the visitors will head into this one looking to get one over Os verdes e brancos and snap a run of three consecutive defeats.

Match preview

Having secured a 10th-placed finish last term, Moreirense find themselves in another mid-table tussle heading into the decisive final stretch of the campaign after a disappointing collapse in the business half of the season.

Vasco Costa’s men kicked off the year with three wins from their opening four matches and looked set to challenge for a place in Europe, but a return of just one win from their last 10 games has seen them drop 16 points off the top-four places.

This drop-off in form has been owing to their struggles at the defensive end of the pitch, where Os verdes e brancos have failed to keep a clean sheet in nine consecutive games, an issue highlighted last Friday, when they were held to a 1-1 draw by Famalicao.

Rodrigo Alonso opened the scoring with a fourth-minute strike to hand the visitors a dream start at the Estadio Municipal de Famalicao, but Pedro Santos hit back for Famalicao in the 71st minute to force a share of the spoils.

Moreirense have now failed to taste victory in seven straight matches, losing four and claiming three draws — their longest run of games without a win since going nine consecutive games between December 2024 and February 2025.

On the other hand, Estoril Praia were no match for league leaders Porto last Sunday as they fell to a 3-1 defeat when the two sides squared off at the Estadio Antonio Coimbra da Mota.

Goals from Victor Froholdt, Pepe and a first-half own goal from Xeka put Porto in a commanding three-goal lead before Yanis Begraoui netted his 19th league goal of the campaign in the 78th minute to pull one back for the hosts.

Estoril Praia have now lost three consecutive league matches, suffering defeats against Rio Ave, Arouca and Porto, while conceding eight goals and scoring four since March’s 3-1 victory over Nacional at the Estadio da Madeira.

Despite their recent slump, Ian Cathro’s men are on course for a top-half finish, having picked 10 wins and seven draws from their 29 Primeira Liga games to collect 37 points and sit eighth in the league table, one point and one place above Moreirense.

While Estoril will be out to stop the rot on Monday and kickstart a run of form in the run-in, they have failed to get the better of Moreirense in their last five meetings, losing twice and claiming three draws since scraping a 1-0 victory in May 2022.

Moreirense Primeira Liga form:

Estoril Praia Primeira Liga form:

Team News

Moreirense will have to make do without Brazilian defender Maracas, who is set to serve a one-game suspension after crossing the yellow card threshold with his booking against Famalicao last weekend.

Alvaro Martinez (muscle), Dinis Pinto (shoulder) and 22-year-old Michel (muscle) add to Os verdes e brancos’ defensive crisis, with the trio ruled out of this weekend’s tie through injuries.

Twenty-year-old defender Leandro Santos is also set to sit out his third consecutive game since coming off injured against Arouca in March, while Portuguese midfielder Vasco Sousa has been ruled out since December with a leg injury.

As for Estoril Praia, 23-year-old defender Kevin Boma continues his lengthy spell on the sidelines after sustaining a severe muscle injury back in February.

Fellow defender Goncalo Costa is also a doubt for this weekend’s tie, while 26-year-old Ricard Sanchez is set to serve a one-game suspension due to accumulated yellow cards in the league.

Moreirense possible starting lineup:

Ferreira; Travassos, Batista, Monteiro, Kiko; John, Stepanovic, Alanzinho; Bondoso, Semedo, Landerson

Estoril Praia possible starting lineup:

Marques; Begraoui, Carvalho, Holsgrove, Tsoungui; Jandro, Amaral, Bacher; Ferro, Carvalho, Robles

We say: Moreirense 2-2 Estoril Praia

Having blown hot and cold for most of the season, Moreirense and Estoril find themselves separated by just one point in the mid-tables and will be looking to secure a morale-boosting result on Monday. Their last three encounters have ended all square, and with both sides evenly matched on paper, we predict they will cancel out each other’s efforts and settle for another share of the spoils.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.