Needing a win to have any hope of advancing beyond the third round of the Copa do Brasil for the first time since 2020, Cuiaba host Goias on Thursday in the second leg of that tie at Arena Pantanal.
Thanks to a goal in first-half stoppage time when these sides met in early May, Goias have a 1-0 advantage heading into this encounter.
Match preview
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Playing from behind is a familiar feeling for Cuiaba, who have not won a first-leg encounter at the Copa do Brasil since 2020 (1-0 win over Botafogo in the round of 16).
However, if they are to prolong their stay in this competition, a victory on Thursday is a must, and Petit has seen his side go unbeaten in their last three matches in all competitions at home.
Cuiaba have lost all four of their league fixtures in Serie A this season, putting them at the bottom of the table, though they are undefeated in their five Copa Sudamericana group games thus far.
While coming from behind has not been a particularly strong attribute of theirs this year, they recently reversed a 2-0 deficit in their Copa Verde semi-final tie with Vila Nova, winning the second leg at home 4-2 but losing on penalties (4-2).
Dourado have not suffered a single defeat in 2024 when leading at the interval, winning their last match when doing so, 2-0 over Metropolitanos at the Copa Sudamericana.
In four previous home games versus Goias in all competitions, Cuiaba have only suffered one defeat (2-1 during the 2022 Serie A campaign), but they have claimed victory only once against them (1-0 in the 2023 Copa Verde).
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Throughout the year, Goias have been virtually impenetrable defensively at home, and that was the case in the opening leg of this tie.
It was the first time since 2020 that they won the first-leg of a third-round tie at this tournament, though four years ago at this stage, they lost leg two against Vasco da Gama (2-1) and were eliminated on penalties (5-3).
Goias are unbeaten at home in 2024 and have won four successive home matches in all competitions in Goiana, failing to concede on any of those occasions.
Marcio Zanardi's men have been much better away from home in recent times, claiming at least a point in three successive domestic encounters as the visitors.
They are off to an excellent start in their quest to return to the Brazilian top flight next season, unbeaten in six Serie B fixtures and currently in second with the fewest goals conceded (two).
Verdao are unbeaten in three previous Copa do Brasil contests with Cuiaba, claiming a 1-1 draw the last time they visited Arena Pantanal in this competition in 2017 and advancing from that third-round tie, 5-1 on aggregate.
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Team News
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Filipe Augusto continues to deal with a muscle injury and is not expected to be available for Cuiaba until late May at the earliest.
There were five new faces in the starting 11 when they battled Goias earlier this month, who did not begin their second-round victory versus Portuguesa (4-3 on penalties), including Gabriel, Alan Empereur, Fernando Sobral, Denilson and Clayson.
Zanardi went with the same starting 11 in the opening leg of this tie that he had in their previous league fixture before that, with the only new faces to feature being Nathan and Luiz Henrique, who came on as substitutes against Cuiaba.
Thiago Galhardo had the only strike in leg one, which was also the only shot on target for them, while Tadeu stopped the lone effort that he faced to collect a clean sheet.
Cuiaba possible starting lineup:
Walter; Alexandre, Gabriel, Alves, Ramon; Cafu, Sobral, Fernandes, Clayson; Pitta, Eliel
Goias possible starting lineup:
Tadeu; Ribeiro, Felipe, Braz; Diego, Marcao, Wellington, Sander; Matheus, Galhardo, Pedrinho
We say: Cuiaba 0-0 Goias (Goias advances 1-0 on aggregate)
All season long, Goias have looked compact and poised along the backline, and we believe they will be able to handle the Cuiaba press and advance.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Joel Lefevre
