Two sides who could do well with a win square off in round 21 of the Portuguese Primeira Liga as SC Farense play host to Nacional at the Estadio de Sao Luis on Sunday.
Both sides are currently separated by just five points at the wrong end of the league standings, with the Leoes de Faro languishing in the relegation zone, three points away from safety.
Match preview
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Farense continue to plunge down the Primeira Liga standings as they suffered a 3-1 defeat against title-chasing Sporting Lisbon when the two sides squared off at the Estadio Jose Alvalade last Sunday.
Ivan Fresneda and Ousmane Diomande netted in a 15-minute spell to put Sporting Lisbon in the driver's seat, and after Lucas Africo pulled one back for the visitors on the stroke of half time, teenage striker Conrad Harder grabbed his fourth league goal of the campaign in the 88th minute to restore the Leoes' two-goal advantage and see off a late comeback attempt.
Farense have now gone six consecutive games without a win across all competitions, losing three and claiming three draws — a run which has seen them crash out of the Taca de Portugal courtesy of a 3-1 home defeat against Benfica in their fifth-round clash on January 14.
Toze Marreco's men have now lost 11 of their 20 Primeira Liga games this term while claiming just three wins and six draws to collect 15 points and sit bottom but one in the league table, two points behind 16th-placed Estrela Amadora in the relegation playoff spot.
Farense's underwhelming campaign has been in no small part down to their lack of cutting edge in attack, an area that they most improve upon sooner rather than later if they are to beat the drop, as they have netted the joint-fewer number of goals this season (13).
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Like this weekend's hosts, Nacional continue to struggle for results at the wrong end of the table as they fell to a 2-1 loss against 10-man Arouca at the Estadio da Madeira last Saturday.
Ulisses scored on the stroke of half time to halve the deficit after Pablo Gonzalbez and Henrique Araujo put Arouca two goals up, and after the visitors went down to 10 men when Boris Popovic picked up a straight red in the 61st minute, they turned in a solid defensive display to see out the result and secure a third win in four games since the turn of the year.
Prior to that, Nacional picked up two wins from their first two games to start the year, seeing off Porto and AVS while scoring five goals and conceding once across both games, before crashing back to earth in a 2-0 defeat at the hands of Sporting Lisbon on January 25.
Having gained promotion from the Segunda Liga last term, Tiago Margarido's men will need to up the ante as the season approaches its business end as they currently sit 14th in the standings with 19 points from 20 matches, just two points above the danger zone.
While Nacional will be looking to find their feet this weekend, results on the road offer little optimism as they have failed to win any of their 12 away matches across all competitions this season, losing nine and claiming three draws so far.
Team News
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Farense remain without the services of Brazilian midfielder Angelo Neto, who has missed each of the last three games since coming off injured against Benfica on January 14.
Veteran striker Marco Matias was a notable absentee against Sporting Lisbon last time out due to injury and the 35-year-old is also a major doubt for this weekend's clash.
Nacional, meanwhile, will have to cope without the duo of Ulisses and Luis Esteves, who are currently suspended after crossing the yellow card threshold with their bookings against Arouca last Saturday.
On the injury front, Margarido will be unable to name Spanish midfielder Miguel Baeza, who has been out of action since sustaining a muscle injury against Unaio Leiria back in October.
SC Farense possible starting lineup:
Velho; Pastor, Moreno, Falcao, Africo, Victor; Balde, Ze Carlos, Menino, Poloni; Tomane
Nacional possible starting lineup:
Franca; Garcia, Aurelio, Ze Vitor, Gomes; Soumare, Sousa; Teodora, Penha, Costa; Tagueu
We say: SC Farense 2-1 Nacional
Farense and Nacional find themselves scrambling for life at the bottom end of the table and we expect both sides to go all out in search of a morale-boosting result this weekend. Margarido's side have been abysmal on their travels this season and we fancy Farense to come away with the desired result, albeit by the odd goal.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Joshua Ojele
