Sporting Lisbon get their Taca da Liga title defence underway when they square off against SC Farense at the Estadio Jose Alvalade on Wednesday.
The Leoes, who were last in action on November 13 when they claimed a 2-1 victory over Famalicao, will set out to pick up a third win on the bounce for the first time since September.
Match preview
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Sporting Lisbon continue their surge to the top of the Primeira Liga table as they held firm to see out a 2-1 victory over Famalicao when the sides met three Sundays ago.
Francisco Trincao and Pedro Goncalves scored first-half goals to put the visitors in the driving seat at the Estadio Municipal de Famalicao before substitute Ivan Jaime halved the deficit with a 78th-minute effort.
Prior to that, Ruben Amorim's men ended their three-game winless run across all competitions as they saw off Vitoria de Guimaraes 3-0 on November 5 courtesy of a brace from Marcus Edwards and Hidemasa Morita's 40th-minute strike.
After a slow start to the season, where they managed just one win from their opening three league matches, Sporting Lisbon have risen to the upper echelons of the league standings after turning their fortunes around in recent weeks.
They have now won five of their last six league matches — with a 1-0 defeat against Arouca on October 29 being the exception — and will be looking to keep the juggernaut rolling as they begin their quest for a record-extending fifth Taca da Liga title.
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Farense, on the other hand, returned to winning ways in the Segunda Liga as they beat Trofense 3-1 at the Estadio de Sao Luis in their last outing before the World Cup break on November 16.
In a game where Miguel Santos and Robson received their marching orders, John Jairo Velasquez, Rui Costa and Pedro Henrique scored to put the hosts in a commanding three-goal lead before Youcef Bechou pulled one back for Trofense.
Prior to that, the Leoes de Faro were on a two-game winless run, losing 3-1 against Leixoes in the fourth round of the Taca de Portugal on November 9, three days before playing out a goalless draw with Feirense on home turf.
Vasco Faisca's men have enjoyed a fine campaign in the Segunda Liga, where they are currently second in the standings with 28 points from 13 games and on course to secure a return to the top flight since the 2020-21 campaign.
While Farense will be looking to build on their victory over Trofense and kick off their Taca da Liga campaign on a high, Wednesday's game pits them against a Sporting Lisbon side who have won six of the last seven meetings between the teams since August 2000.
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Team News
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Sporting Lisbon will be without a few players featuring for their respective nations at the World Cup, including the Uruguayan duo of Manuel Ugarte and Sebastian Coates.
Abdul Fatawu Issahaku and Morita are both in Qatar representing Ghana and Japan respectively and will play no part in Wednesday's contest.
On the injury front, Amorim will be unable to call upon the services of Daniel Braganca and Luis Neto, who are currently recuperating from cruciate ligament and knee injuries respectively.
With his strike against Trofense, Costa now has five goals in his last seven matches and we expect the former Santa Clara man to spearhead the visitors' attack once again.
He should be joined in the two-man front line by Velasquez, while we expect Faisca to name a back four of Abner, Goncalo Silva, Zach Muscat and former Gil Vicente defender Talocha.
Brazilian defender Robson is out of contention for the trip to the Estadio Jose Alvalade as he is currently suspended after picking up a red card against Trofense last time out.
Sporting Lisbon possible starting lineup:
Adan; Juste, Inacio, Reis; Esgaio, Rochinha, Essugo, Porro; Trincao, Goncalves, Paulinho
SC Farense possible starting lineup:
Velho; Abner Silva, Muscat, Talocha; Ponde, Goncalves, Falcao, Matias;Costa, Velasquez
We say: Sporting Lisbon 3-0 SC Farense
Despite missing a number of players due to their participation at the World Cup, we expect Sporting to make light work of their opponents, potentially owing to a fast and clinical start from squad members looking to impress.
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Top tip
Joshua Ojele
