Atletico Mineiro welcome Bragantino to the Mineirao for a Brazilian Serie A clash on Saturday night.
The 2021 double winners fell below that level last season but look set to embark on another title challenge this year ahead of the opening of their new stadium in a few weeks' time.
Match preview
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After a shaky start, Eduardo Coudet's reign as manager has ultimately begun rather well, with 13 points from a possible 15 helping them to recover from a start which saw Mineiro near the bottom of the standings.
After four games, Coudet's side had picked up just four points, and also lost their first two Copa Libertadores group stage matches.
Now though, they find themselves up in third, just four points behind Botafogo, who lead the way early on.
On the continent, they have vastly improved too after that worrying start, winning three in a row, meaning they need just one point from their final game to progress to the knockouts.
It was a solitary strike from Hulk which earned them a 1-0 win against Peruvian outfit Alianza Lima on Tuesday, just days after he sealed a victory of the same scoreline against Cruzeiro in the league, thanks to a trademark wonder goal from the stocky attacker.
Hulk now has 85 goals in 134 Mineiro appearances since joining in 2021 and looks set to be the difference maker should Mineiro taste success this season.
They are only fighting on two fronts now, though, after squandering a 2-0 first leg lead to lose against Corinthians in the Copa do Brasil last 16 last week.
Mineiro are yet to lose to Bragantino since their rebranding as a Red Bull affiliate, but they have found difficulty in beating the Sao Paulo-based club, with four draws in their six recent meetings.
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Bragantino have been competitive since their promotion to this level in 2019, qualifying for continental football in each season.
Last season's 14th-placed finish did represent their lowest in the top flight so far, but it still enabled them to play Copa Sudamericana football again this year.
They have been a tough nut to crack both domestically and on the continent so far this season too, losing just two of their first 14 games.
After a hard-fought draw away at Estudiantes on Wednesday where they went down to 10 men, Bragantino have picked up 11 points from their five group games in the Sudamericana, meaning a win will see them win the group in their final outing.
Their form on the back of midweek continental encounters has been good so far too, as they have won two and drawn two of their Serie A games that have come directly after a Sudamericana clash.
Team News
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Argentine duo Cristian Pavon and Matias Zaracho will both return from suspensions ahead of this fixture after yellow card accumulation ruled them out of last weekend's win at Cruzeiro.
Both featured against Alianza in midweek so should come into the league side as well, but in attack, Pedrinho and Alan Kardec are out injured.
Igor Rabello is also sidelined for the hosts, having not featured for the side yet in 2023.
Juninho Capixaba was sent off for Bragantino in their midweek draw in Argentina, but he will still be available for selection here, before serving the suspension against Tacuary at the end of the month.
The visitors have a long list of injuries to contend with though, including serious ones for Luan Candido and Ignacio Laquintana.
Bruninho, Leo Ortiz and Raul should all return before the end of the month, along with Helinho and Talisson, but they remain absent for now.
Thiago Borbas is Bragantino's top scorer this season, but he remarkably only started his first game of the season in midweek with their injury list piling up though, he could do so again.
Atletico Mineiro possible starting lineup:
Everson; Saravia, Nathan Silva, Jemerson, Rubens; Battaglia, Zaracho, Paulinho; Pavon, Hulk, Hyoran
Bragantino possible starting lineup:
Cleiton; Hurtado, Realpe, Luan Patrick, Juninho Capixaba; Lucas Evangelista, Matheus Fernandes, Eric Ramires; Thiago Borbas, Eduardo Sasha, Vitinho
We say: Atletico Mineiro 2-2 Bragantino
Mineiro's form has picked up drastically since the start of the campaign, and they will come into the game as favourites, mainly due to the excellent form of Hulk.
Bragantino are a tough opponent though as only Cruzeiro and Fluminense have beaten them this season, and they could maintain their unbeaten run here.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Top tip
Andrew Delaney
