Arouca are in action on home turf for the last time in 2024 when they take on Gil Vicente at the Estadio Municipal de Arouca to get the ball rolling in round 16 of the Portuguese Primeira Liga on Friday.
The Gilistas head into the game without a win in any of their previous 15 clashes against the home side, a run they will be looking to end and make it three victories from their final four away games in all competitions to close the year.
Match preview
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Arouca were sent crashing back to earth at the wrong end of the Primeira Liga standings as they suffered a 3-1 defeat against Casa Pia when the two sides squared off at the Estadio Pina Manique last Friday.
Jeremy Livolant and Leonardo Lelo scored quick-fire goals to put Casa Pia in a commanding two-goal lead heading into the break, and after Alphonso Trezza pulled one back in the 63rd minute, Samuel Obeng netted with two minutes left in the game to see off a late fight back from the visitors and hand Os Gansos their fifth league win of the campaign.
This came just five days after the Arouquenses snapped their run of six back-to-back matches without a win across all competitions with a hard-fought 1-0 victory over Santa Clara thanks to a second-half strike from 30-year-old midfielder Jason.
Having secured an impressive seventh-placed finish last term, it has been a forgettable first half of the season for Vasco Seabra's men, who have picked up just 11 points from their 15 matches to sit rock-bottom in the table, two points away from safety.
Arouca's underwhelming campaign has been owing to their lack of firepower up top, where they have netted a league-fewest nine goals, while conceding the joint-most number of goals at the opposite end of the pitch after (26).
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Elsewhere, Gil Vicente made it a cheerful Christmas season for their supporters last Sunday when they held their own to play out a goalless draw against league leaders Sporting Lisbon at the Estadio Cidade de Barcelos.
Despite seeing less than 40% of the ball possession and being on the back foot for most of the game, Gil Vicente turned in a defensive show of class to repel Joao Pereira's men and leave with a huge point.
The Gilistas have now gone three back-to-back games without defeat in the league, claiming wins over Nacional and Farense before last weekend's stalemate, having lost each of the four league matches preceding this run.
Gil Vicente have won four of their 15 Primeira Liga games while losing six and claiming five draws to collect 17 points and sit 10th in the table, but could move level on points with seventh-placed Casa Pia with a win on Friday.
However, next up for Bruno Pinheiro's men is the daunting challenge of an opposing side whom they have failed to get the better of in any of their last 15 encounters, losing nine and claiming six draws since October 2010.
While Gil Vicente will be desperate to end their Arouca hoodoo, results on their travels offer little optimism as they have managed just one win from their last 10 away games in the league while losing six and picking up three draws since the start of May.
Team News
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Arouca will have to cope without the services of 34-year-old midfielder David Simao, who is currently suspended after crossing the yellow card threshold with his booking against Casa Pia last time out.
On the injury front, the Arouquenses remain without the midfield trio of Pedro Moreira, Oriol Busquets and 24-year-old Vitinho, who continue their spells on the sidelines.
Kouassi Eboue is yet to feature this season due to a severe muscle problem while Nino Galovic has been ruled out since picking up a knee injury against Moreirense on August 18.
As for Gil Vicente, South African international Sphephelo Sithole picked up a ligament injury while on international duty against South Sudan in September and the 25-year-old is out of contention for Friday's clash.
Off the back of a standout defensive display against Sporting Lisbon, we expect Pinheiro to name an unchanged back four of Ze Carlos, Josue Sa, Ruben Fernandes and Brazilian full-back Kazu, with 23-year-old Andrew starting between the sticks once again.
Arouca possible starting lineup:
Mantl; Esgaio, Lamba, Fontan, Weverson; Loum, Santos; Jason, Sylla, Trezza; Yalcin
Gil Vicente possible starting lineup:
Andrew; Ze Carlos, Sa, Fernandes, Kazu; Garcia, Gbane, Caseres; Mboula, Aguirre, Correia
We say: Arouca 1-1 Gil Vicente
After weeks of mediocre results, Gil Vicente have turned a corner of late and will be looking to make it 10 points from a possible 12 heading into their final outing of the year. While Arouca have struggled to grind out results this season, they have enjoyed the better of this fixture and we predict they will do just enough to leave with a point.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Joshua Ojele
