The battle for survival continues in round 29 of the Portuguese Primeira Liga as Estrela Amadora and SC Farense go head-to-head at the Estadio Jose Gomes on Sunday.
Having failed to win each of the last six meetings between the two teams, the Tricolores will head into the weekend looking to get one over the visiting side and secure their first home win of the year.
We say: Estrela Amadora 2-0 SC Farense
Buoyed by their hard-fought victory over Nacional, Estrela Amadora will head into the weekend with renewed optimism as they look to close out the season strong and preserve their top-flight status.
While Faria’s men have picked up just two points from their last six home games, they take on an out-of-sorts Farense side whose form is currently nothing to write home about and we fancy them to come away with the desired result.
> Primeira Liga preview: Estrela Amadora vs Farense
Now in the driving seat, Benfica will look to extend their explosive run and widen the gap at the summit when they welcome Arouca to Estadio da Luz on Sunday for round 29 of the Primeira Liga.
The Eagles soared to the top of the standings with a commanding victory at Porto last weekend, moving two points clear of second-placed Sporting Lisbon, who stumbled in their matchday 28 fixture against Braga.
We say: Benfica 4-1 Arouca
Benfica are overwhelming favourites to win this, and anything short of an emphatic victory would be a surprise given the home side’s explosive form and dominance in this fixture, though we expect the visitors to find the net.
> Primeira Liga preview: Benfica vs Arouca
After moving up the Primeira Liga standings, Braga welcome relegation-threatened AVS in a bid to tighten their grip on a top-three finish.
The Archbishops claimed a crucial point away to Sporting Lisbon last time out to leapfrog Porto into third place, while the visitors remain lodged in the relegation playoff zone following their defeat to Estoril Praia.
We say: Braga 2-0 AVS
Braga have won each of their last seven games on home turf across all competitions and have kept clean sheets in five of those, so anything short of a convincing victory for the hosts would be a real shock.
> Primeira Liga preview: Braga vs AVS
Two sides separated by six points in mid-table square off in round 29 of Portuguese Primeira Liga as Moreirense play host to Rio Ave at the Parque de Jogos Comendador Joaquim de Almeida Freitas on Sunday.
Both sides head into the midweek clash in contrasting form, with Os verdes e brancos unbeaten in each of their last five outings while the visitors are on a run of five consecutive defeats since the first week of March.
We say: Moreirense 1-0 Rio Ave
The last five meetings between Moreirense and Rio Ave have produced a combined 14 goals and another thrilling matchup is on the cards this weekend as both sides go all out in search of maximum points. Petit’s men have lost each of their most recent games on the road and we predict Moreirense will continue from where they dropped off against Gil Vicente last time out.
> Primeira Liga preview: Moreirense vs Rio Ave
