Nacionalvs.Moreirense

Os verdes e brancos head into the weekend unbeaten in each of their last 13 games against the home side since January 2015 and will be looking to extend this dominant nine-year spell.

Match preview

Nacional continue to struggle for results at the wrong end of the Primeira Liga standings as they suffered a 2-1 defeat against Gil Vicente at the Estadio Cidade de Barcelos last Saturday.

After falling behind to Santo Garcia's first-half opener, Ulisses struck five minutes after the break to draw the visitors level but Ruben Fernandes netted in the seventh minute of stoppage time to hand Gil Vicente a dramatic victory.

Nacional have now failed to taste victory in three back-to-back matches — picking up just one point from a possible nine — and have managed just one win in their last 10 games across all competitions.

This poor run of results has seen Tiago Margarido's men plunge into the danger zone while crashing out of both the Taca de Portugal and Taca da Liga courtesy of defeats against Uniao Leiria and Sporting Lisbon respectively.

Having gained promotion from the second tier last term, Nacional have picked up just two wins from their 12 Primeira Liga matches so far while losing seven and claiming three draws to collect nine points and sit 16th in the table, only above Farense and Arouca.

Elsewhere, Moreirense turned in a stunning team display as they secured a 2-1 victory over league leaders Sporting Lisbon at the Parque de Jogos Comendador Joaquim de Almeida Freitas last time out.

Despite seeing just 31% of the ball possession and being on the back foot for most of the game, Dinis Pinto and Guilherme Schettine hit the target to cancel out Viktor Gyokeres's 12th-minute penalty and turn the game on its head.

Before that, Cesar Peixoto's men picked up two back-to-back victories, including a shock 2-1 victory over Porto in the Taca de Portugal fourth round on November 24, one week before suffering a 3-2 defeat against Rio Ave at the Estadio dos Arcos.

Os verdes e brancos have enjoyed a solid league campaign so far, picking up 20 points from their 13 Primeira Liga matches to sit seventh in the standings, seven points off the European qualifying places.

While Moreirense will look to continue from where they left off against Sporting Lisbon, they will need to show their mettle at the Estadio da Madeira, having lost five of their last six away games in the league since August 25.

Nacional Primeira Liga form:

D

L

W

L

D

L

Nacional form (all competitions):

L

L

W

L

D

L

Moreirense Primeira Liga form:

W

W

L

W

L

W

Moreirense form (all competitions):

L

L

W

W

L

W

Team News

Brazilian defender Gustavo Garcia was forced off injured in the 57th minute in the game against Gil Vicente last weekend and the Palmeiras loanee is a major doubt for Nacional.

Should he fail to shake off the injury, former Moreirens man Joao Aurelio should come into the fold, forming the back four with Ze Vitor, Ulisses and 28-year-old Jose Gomes.

Meanwhile, Moreirense remain without Portuguese forward Hernani Infande, who has been out of action since picking up a ligament problem in March's game against Arouca.

He is joined on the Os verdes e brancos' injury table by Brazilian midfielder Guilherme Liberato, who also continues his lengthy spell on the sidelines after sustaining a severe knee problem in August.

Nacional possible starting lineup:

Franca; Aurelio, Ze Vitor, Ulisses, Gomes; Esteves, Dias, Soumare; Appiah, Isaac, Thomas

Moreirense possible starting lineup:

Kewin; Pinto, Marcelo, Maracas, Frimpong; Ismael, Tavares; Madson, Benny, Alanzinho; Schettine

We say: Nacional 0-2 Moreirense

Moreirense have put together a fine run of results in recent weeks, including victories over Porto and Sporting Lisbon, and will head into the weekend with sky-high confidence. While we expect Nacional to put up a fight, we are backing Peixoto's side to come away with all three points.

Written by

Joshua Ojele

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