Preview: Moreirense vs. Pacos de Ferreira - prediction, team news, lineups

Moreirense and Pacos de Ferreira draw the curtains on round 10 of the Primeira Liga when they lock horns at the Parque de Jogos Comendador Joaquim de Almeida Freitas on Monday.

The hosts will head into the game looking to get one over the visitors and move clear of the relegation places after suffering defeats in both home and away fixtures last season.

Match preview

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Moreirense saw their three-game unbeaten run come to an end last Saturday when they fell to a 1-0 loss at the hands of Sporting Lisbon.

In a cagey affair at the Estadio Jose Alvalade, Uruguayan defender Sebastian Coates continued his sensational goalscoring form as he netted the only goal of the game shortly after the quarter-hour mark.

Prior to that, Joao Henriques's men progressed into the fourth round of the Taca de Portugal after securing a 3-2 victory over Oriental Dragon when the sides squared off two Saturdays ago.

After a rough start to the season, Moreirense find themselves in 15th place in the Primeira Liga table, just one point above Famalicao in the relegation playoff spot after picking up seven points from nine games.

This has been down to their struggles at the defensive end of the pitch, where they boast one of the division's poorest records with 17 goals conceded already.

While they will be looking to quickly return to winning ways, next up is an opposing side who are unbeaten in all but one of the last five meetings between the teams, claiming three wins and one draw in that time.

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Pacos de Ferreira failed to find their feet last time out when they were held to a bore draw by 10-man Braga at the Braga Municipal Stadium.

In a game where Francisco Moura saw red on the stroke of half time, the Pacenses failed to make use of their numerical advantage as they were forged to settle for a share of the spoils by a determined Braga side.

Prior to that, Jorge Simao's men confirmed their place in the next round of the Taca de Portugal courtesy of a 3-0 win over Aguias Moradal on October 17 before playing out an uneventful goalless draw with Arouca one week later.

However, they head into Monday's game without a win in any of their last five league outings, picking up four draws and losing once since a 1-0 win over Portimonense back in August.

This unconvincing run of results has seen Pacos de Ferreira, who secured an impressive fifth-placed finish last season, drop to ninth place on the log after claiming 10 points from the opening nine rounds of matches.

Team News

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Moreirense remain without the services of Brazilian forward  Jefferson Galego, who picked up a knee injury in the league opener against Benfica back in August.

Other than the 24-year-old, there are no issues to contend with on the injury front, meaning Henriques has the luxury of an almost full house at his disposal.

Despite their recent upsurge in form, a lack of defensive sturdiness has been an area of concern for the Os verdes e brancos and the Portuguese manager could effect some changes at the defensive end of the pitch on Monday.

Joao Vigario remains the only injury concern for the visitors after the Portuguese defender sustained a knee problem back in August.

Following their solid display last time out, where they held Braga to a goalless draw in the Taca da Liga, Simao could name a similar defensive unit on Monday.

Should that be the case, we could see a backline of Jorge Silva, Nuno Lima, Maracas and Luis Bastos shielding Igor Vekiv between the sticks.

Having served a one-match suspension for receiving his marching orders against Arouca last weekend, Nuno Santos could return to the fold and handle business at the centre of the park for Pacos de Ferreira.

Moreirense possible starting lineup:

Pasinato; Jorge, Vitoria, Rosic; Ramos, Pacheco, Soares, Conte; Santos, Martins, Luis

Pacos de Ferreira possible starting lineup:

Ferreira; Fonseca, Ramos, Maracas, Antunes; Eustaquio, Carlos; Ferreira, Delgado, Silva; Denilson

We say: Moreirense 1-1 Pacos de Ferreira

Despite their defeat to the reigning champions last time out, Henriques will charge his side to take the positives from that performance and bounce back to winning ways. Meanwhile, for all their recent struggles, Simao will feel satisfied with Pacos de Ferreira's position in the league standings and hope they can keep their unbeaten run going. We predict a share of the spoils in this one as they both head into the game in a similar form.