Afghanistan
Angola
Argentina
Asia (AFC)
Asian Games
Australia
Belgium-Netherlands
Brazil
Burkina Faso
Central American & Caribbean Games
Central American Games
Congo DR
Denmark
England
Europe (UEFA)
FYR Macedonia
Finland
Germany
Greece
International Tournaments
Italy
Mediterranean Games
Mexico
National
Nepal
North & Central America (Concacaf)
Palestine
Pan American Games
Panama
Russia
Scandinavia
Serbia And Montenegro
South American Games
Spain
Syria
USA
Venezuela
World (FIFA)
Yemen
Zimbabwe

Preview: Chaves vs. Vitoria de Guimaraes - prediction, team news, lineups

sportsmole.co.uk, 15 March 2024, 17:15
Two sides with contrasting Primeira Liga ambitions this season will meet this weekend when Chaves take on Vitoria de Guimaraes at Estadio Municipal Eng. Manuel Branco Teixeira on Sunday afternoon.

The hosts' primary goal will be to avoid the drop the term as they sit bottom of the table after 25 matches, while the visitors are gunning for a spot in Europe, currently in fifth place in the league standings.

Match preview

Following a sensational return to the top flight last season when they only narrowly missed out on a top-six finish, Chaves have experienced a major drop-off this season and head into gameweek 26 with just 19 points to their name, including four wins, seven draws and 14 losses.

However, with the bottom half of the table still being very tightly compact, they are just four points from safety, and if they are able to pull off an against-the-odds win here, they could draw level with Estoril Praia, who are currently in the sole relegation playoff spot in the standings.

Flavienses played out a goalless draw away to Gil Vicente in their last match, marking their third consecutive Primeira Liga game without victory, following a 1-1 draw against Estrela at the end of February and a 5-1 defeat at the hands of Arouca at the start of the month.

At home this season, Moreno's side have earned the bulk of their points (12), though over their last six games, they have managed just one win, which was a 2-1 victory over Boavista exactly one month ago.

Based on recent history, the hosts are likely to struggle to take anything from this match. When these sides met in the reverse fixture back in October, Chaves were totally outclassed from the first whistle and slumped to a 5-0 defeat.

Meanwhile, that victory over this opponent in October stands as Vitoria's biggest win of the season to date and also extended their current winning streak against Chaves to five matches in succession dating back to 2018.

Since then, Os Vimaranenses have maintained good form and will head into Sunday's fixture with 47 points after 25 games, three points behind Braga in the final European qualification spot and eight clear of Moreirense in sixth.

Alvaro Pacheco's side secured their 14th league win of the season last weekend with a 1-0 win over Famalicao at home and are now going for a third consecutive victory having beaten Estoril 3-1 at the start of the month.

The visitors have managed to take 19 points from a possible 36 in away league matches this season. They are currently on a three-match unbeaten streak (W2 D1 L0) and have not suffered an away defeat since the end of January against Gil Vicente.

Unsurprisingly, Vitoria are heavily fancied to claim all three points here, and they will also see this as a golden opportunity to make up ground in the goal difference column against what has been the out-and-out worst defence in the league this season.

Chaves Primeira Liga form:

D

L

W

D

L

D

Vitoria de Guimaraes Primeira Liga form:

W

D

D

L

W

W

Team News

Having managed only their third clean sheet this season last week, it would come as no surprise if Moreno opted for an unchanged backline with Ygor Nogueira, Vasco Fernandes and Junior Pius in front of Hugo Souza in goal.

Hector Hernandez has scored exactly half of the side's 24 league goals this season and will almost certainly continue to lead the line alongside Raphael Guzzo and Joao Correia.

Pacheco is still without the services of his first-choice shot-stopper Bruno Varela due to injury, which should mean that Charles will continue between the sticks for the foreseeable future.

Tomas Ribeiro will be eligible for selection again, having served his one-match suspension against Fama, and he should slot straight back into the three-man defence, with Jorge Fernandes likely to drop to the bench.

Chaves possible starting lineup:

Souza; Pius, Fernandes, Nogueira; Benny, Nwakali, Essugo, Carraca; Guzzo, Hernandez, Correia

Vitoria de Guimaraes possible starting lineup:

Charles; Ribeiro, Borevkovic, Villanueva; Gaspar, Handel, T Silva, Mendes, Mangas; Oliveira, J Silva

We say: Chaves 1-2 Vitoria de Guimaraes

Vitoria notched up their biggest win of the season against this opponent in the reverse fixture and are carrying solid form into this contest. They have also beaten Chaves in each of their last five encounters, outscoring them 13-1 in that time, and we feel they will add another three points to their tally in this one.

Previews by email

Top News

14 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk England moved to the top of their 2024-25 UEFA Nations League group on Thursday evening courtesy of a 3-0 victory over Greece. 14 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Didier Deschamps was left frustrated on Thursday as his France side failed to capitalise on their dominance against Israel, being held to a 0-0 draw, though they still progressed to the UEFA Nations League quarterfinals after Italy beat Belgium in the other League A Group 2 fixture. 14 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk England have risen to the top of Group 2 of League B in the UEFA Nations League courtesy of a 3-0 victory over Greece in Athens on Thursday night. 14 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Sandro Tonali's first international goal was enough to send Italy through to the finals of the UEFA Nations League courtesy of a 1-0 win away in Belgium this evening. 14 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Chelsea Women and Manchester City Women will go head-to-head in Saturday's top-of-the-table clash at Stamford Bridge. 14 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Pep Guardiola has asked Manchester City to sign two defenders in 2025, according to a report. 14 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Al-Nassr centre-back Aymeric Laporte has said that he is open to making the move to Real Madrid. 14 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Barcelona sporting director Deco has said that his club are not planning to be active during the January transfer window. 14 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Moldova can boost their hopes of securing promotion from League D Group 2 in the UEFA Nations League when they face fellow European minnows Andorra at Estadi Nacional on Saturday. 14 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Montenegro welcome Iceland to Stadion Kraj Bistrice in Niksic for their penultimate League B Group 4 fixture in the UEFA Nations League on Saturday evening. 14 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Arsenal Women and Tottenham Hotspur Women will be looking to secure derby bragging rights when they face off in Saturday's Women's Super League clash at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. 14 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Nacho has ruled out the possibility of returning to Real Madrid amid suggestions that Los Blancos were considering making an attempt to re-sign him during the January transfer window. 14 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Two teams with contrasting objectives in the National League are set to meet at the Gateshead International Stadium on Saturday, as promotion hopefuls Gateshead host relegation-threatened Aldershot Town. 14 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Ruben Amorim will reportedly take Manchester United training for the first time on Monday, with the club confident that his visa will have arrived in time for him to officially get on the grass next week. 14 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Argentina head coach Lionel Scaloni has said that a back issue forced Lisandro Martinez to pull out of the squad for the national team's upcoming 2026 World Cup qualification matches with Paraguay and Peru. 14 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Bayer Leverkusen manager Xabi Alonso has reportedly set his sights on an exit from the club next summer, and plans to take key man Alex Grimaldo with him. 14 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Locked together at the top of League C Group 1 with two games to play, Sweden and Slovakia will battle it out to take the outright lead when they meet on Saturday evening. 14 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Arsenal will reportedly allow out-of-favour defender Jakub Kiwior to leave the club on loan in January. 14 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Wales travel to the Kadir Has Stadium in Kayseri to face Turkey in their penultimate League B Group 4 fixture in the UEFA Nations League on Saturday evening. 14 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Barcelona midfielder Pablo Torre has not ruled out the possibility of leaving the club in January, after seeing his game time reduced recently. 14 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Aiming to narrow their gap to the top two in the League One table with a third consecutive victory, Barnsley will visit the Abbey Stadium to take on Cambridge United on Saturday. 14 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Alexander Isak has delivered a fresh update on his future at Newcastle United, amid reported interest from a number of clubs including Arsenal. 14 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk West Ham United Women will attempt to claim back-to-back victories when they travel to the Broadfield Stadium for Saturday's Women's Super League meeting with Brighton & Hove Albion Women. 14 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Roma have confirmed the appointment of 73-year-old Claudio Ranieri as their new first-team manager until the end of the season. 14 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Newcastle United winger Anthony Gordon has revealed that he was "desperate" to join Chelsea in 2022. 14 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Arsenal could rival Manchester City and Liverpool for the signature of Real Sociedad midfielder Martin Zubimendi. 14 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Liverpool are reportedly weighing up whether to make a move for in-form PSV Eindhoven striker Ricardo Pepi. 14 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk As exquisite as Pedro Neto's equaliser was, the Portuguese's 20-yard leveller for Chelsea in Sunday's 1-1 Premier League draw with Arsenal was arguably more to do with the Gunners' uncharacteristic defensive failings. 14 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Barcelona have reportedly made a decision over whether they will pursue a move for Liverpool right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold. 14 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Estevao Willian has revealed that he will continue with his education even after completing a big-money transfer to Chelsea.