Portimonense will be looking to make it two wins from two in the Primeira Liga for the first time this year when they host Vitoria de Guimaraes at the Estadio Municipal de Portimao on Sunday.
Os Vimaranenses, on the other hand, head into the weekend on a run of three consecutive victories across all competitions and will look to march on in the same vein.
Match preview
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Portimonense picked up their first win of the season in style as they comfortably brushed aside Pacos de Ferreira 3-0 when the sides met at the Capital do Movel Municipal Stadium last Monday.
In a game where Uilton received an 18th-minute straight red, goals from Yago Caju, Lucinda and Ewerton condemned the hosts to a fourth consecutive defeat across all competitions.
Prior to that, Paulo Sergio's men endured an unconvincing pre-season campaign, where they picked up two wins and one draw from their six friendly outings, before suffering a 1-0 loss against Boavista in their league opener on August 7.
Portimonense, who secured a 13th-placed finish in the Primeira Liga last term, head into the weekend on a run of two consecutive home defeats in the league, while they have managed just two wins in front of their home crowd since early November.
Elsewhere, Vitoria de Guimaraes made it two wins from their opening two Primeira Liga games last weekend when they edged out Estoril Praia 1-0 at the Estadio Dom Afonso Henriques.
In a game where Goncalo Esteves received his marching orders, Andre Silva scored the only goal of the game inside their opening 16 minutes to condemn the visitors to their first defeat of the season.
Prior to that, Joao Teixeira's side claimed a 1-0 victory over Chaves in their league curtain-raiser on August 7 before seeing off Hajduk Split 1-0 in the second leg of the Europa Conference League third qualifying round clash three days later.
Vitoria de Guimaraes head into the weekend unbeaten in their last seven league outings, claiming four wins and three draws since a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Porto on April 10.
While Os Vimaranenses will be seeking a fourth win on the bounce for the first time since August 2021, they travel to the Estadio Municipal de Portimao where they have managed just one win in their last six visits since 2011, picking up one draw and losing four in that time.
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Team News
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Portimonense will head into the weekend without the services of Brazilian midfielder Carlinhos, who has been sidelined since May's game against Sporting Lisbon through an ankle injury.
Anderson Oliveira came off with a game-ending injury inside the opening 20 minutes of the game against Pacos de Ferreira and the Brazilian midfielder is out of contention for Sergio's side.
In his absence, fellow countryman Luquinha will push for his first starting appearance since April's 1-0 loss against Arouca, teaming up with Pedro Sa and Mohamed Diaby at the heart of the park.
As for Vitoria de Guimaraes, Teixeira will be unable to call upon 22-year-old midfielder Tomas Handel, who has been out of action since February through a severe muscle injury.
Portuguese defender Jorge Fernandes is set to sit out his sixth game on the bounce after coming off injured midway through the Europa Conference League qualifying game against Puskas Academy back in July.
Os Vimaranenses have their defensive line to thank for their fine start to the season and Estadio Municipal de Portimao could name the back four of Miguel Maga, Andre Amaro, Mikel Villanueva and Helder Sa, who have started the opening two league games.
Portimonense possible starting lineup:
Portugal; Moufi, Relvas, Relvas, Seck; Sa, Luquinha, Diaby; Estrela, Junior, Caju
Vitoria de Guimaraes possible starting lineup:
Varela; Maga, Villanuev, Amaro. Sa; Silva, Almeida, Bamba; Lameiras,Silva, Silva
We say: Portimonense 1-2 Vitoria de Guimaraes
While Portimonense will look to build on Monday's victory, they face a Vitoria de Guimaraes side who are unbeaten in their last three encounters. Os Vimaranenses, who are one of just four sides to win their opening two games, head into the weekend with sky-high confidence and we predict that they will come out on top once again, albeit by a narrow margin.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Top tip
Joshua Ojele
