Preview: Porto vs. Santa Clara - prediction, team news, lineups

Os Acoreanos, who are currently rooted to the bottom of the league table, head into the weekend looking to pick up their first win since November and keep their slender survival hopes alive.

Match preview

Porto kept their dreams of retaining the Primeira Liga title alive as they came from behind to claim a 2-1 victory over league leaders Benfica when the sides squared off last Friday.

The Dragoes journeyed to the Estadio da Luz knowing that defeat could effectively spell the end of their title chase as they sat 10 points behind Roger Schmidt's side in the league table.

Benfica looked set to run away with it after an own goal from Diogo Costa gifted them a 10th-minute lead, but Mateus Uribe restored parity on the stroke of half time before Mehdi Taremi completed the comeback in the 54th minute.

Porto have now gone six consecutive games without defeat across all competitions, claiming four wins and two draws since their 2-1 home defeat at the hands of Gil Vicente on February 26.

Sergio Conceicao's side return to the Estadio do Dragao, where they have won all but one of their last eight matches, scoring 20 goals and keeping four clean sheets since the start of November.

Porto have now picked up 20 wins and four draws in their 27 matches so far to collect 64 points and sit second in the Primeira Liga table, seven points adrift of Benfica.

At the opposite end of the table, Santa Clara suffered a fresh blow in their relegation scrap last Friday when they fell to a 1-0 defeat against Vizela at the Estadio de Sao Miguel.

In a game where Paulo Henrique received his marching orders, the hosts turned in another spineless display as Milutin Osmajic struck his seventh goal of the season in the 31st minute to hand the Vizelenses a third win on the trot.

With that result, Os Acoreanos have failed to score in four consecutive games and have lost each of their last eight outings, stretching back to a 2-2 draw against Boavista on February 4.

Santa Clara have also now gone 18 straight games without a win across all competitions, losing 15 and claiming three draws since their 3-1 victory over Estoril Praia on November 15.

With 15 points from 27 games, Danildo Accioly's men are rooted to the bottom of the league table, 10 points away from safety and four off 16th-placed Maritimo in the relegation playoff spot.

With just seven games remaining to save their season, Santa Clara must see off the threat of a spirited Porto side who are unbeaten in 11 of their last 12 encounters, claiming 10 wins and one draw since December 2018.

Porto Primeira Liga form:

L

W

W

D

W

W

Porto form (all competitions):

W

W

D

D

W

W

Santa Clara Primeira Liga form:

L

L

L

L

L

L

Team News

Joao Mario was forced off injured a few minutes after coming off the bench in last week's win over Benfica and the 23-year-old defender is a major doubt for Porto.

Other than that, Porto boast a clean bill of health with no suspension concerns and we expect Conceicao to name a similar XI on Monday.

Taremi returned to the scoresheet with his 14th league goal of the season in the aforementioned game and the Iran international should lead Porto's attack once again.

Meanwhile, Santa Clara will have to make do without Henrique, who will serve a one-game suspension after picking up a late red card in last week's game against Vizela.

In his absence, Brazilian defender Paulo Eduardo should fill in at left-back, forming the back four with Ygor Nogueira, Kennedy Boateng and French full-back Pierre Sagna.

On the injury front, Os Acoreanos remain without Marco Rocha and Tomas Domingos, who have been ruled out through hamstring and knee injuries respectively.

Having failed to score in their last four outings, Accioly could make changes in attack, with Kyosuke Tagawa and Ricardinho potentially starting this weekend after coming off the bench against the Vizelenses.

Porto possible starting lineup:

Costa; Manafa, Pepe, Marcano, Wendell; Otavio, Grujic, Uribe, Galeno; Taremi, Pepe

Santa Clara possible starting lineup:

Batista; Sagna, Nogueira, Firmino, Fagundes; Costinha, Boateng; Allano, Misao, Andrezinho; Babi

We say: Porto 3-0 Santa Clara

Porto will be licking their lips as they take on a floundering Santa Clara side who have endured a gruesome campaign. Given the gulf in quality and experience between the two sides, and their contrasting form, we are backing Porto to pick up from where they left off against Benfica and claim a comfortable win in front of their home fans.

Previews by email