Two sides in need of a win will face off when Santos play host to Corinthians at Estadio Urbano Caldeira in the Campeonato Brasileiro Serie A on Thursday.
The hosts are currently 13th in a compact league table, with 13 points after 14 matches, while Corinthians find themselves just one point above the relegation zone in 16th and could slip below the dotted line if they concede what would be their sixth loss of the season in this match.
Match preview
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Santos come into this match following a frustrating 0-0 draw last week against Coritiba, who sit at the foot of the Serie A table and are yet to win a single league match this term.
What was particularly concerning for Santos was that not only were they unable to break down the side with the second-worst defensive record in the league, they only created one big chance in the entire 90 minutes and managed just three shots on target compared to their opponents' seven.
To rub salt into the wound, Guilherme Camacho, who was brought on a minute into the second half, was sent off after receiving two yellows in the space of three minutes in the dying moments of the game.
With that result, Santos are now winless in their last four matches in Serie A, drawing three and losing one, while in all competitions, they failed to win any of their last eight matches, last tasting victory over a month ago.
However, while head coach Odair Hellmann would have hoped for more than two draws in their last two home games, his side is one of only seven teams in the league that are still unbeaten on their home patch, with two wins and three draws in five matches to date, but he will know that this opponent will not make it easy to keep that record intact for another week.
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Meanwhile, Corinthians are a long way from the side that finished last season in fourth place and could have found themselves coming into this fixture in the drop zone had any of the three sides directly below them found a win in their last match.
Unfortunately for Timao, their poor form has not been confined to just domestic competition, as a 2-0 loss to America Mineiro at the start of the month meant that they were knocked out of the Copa Libertadores and will have to avoid defeat against Liverpool next week or they will also miss out on the Copa Sudamericana this season.
The only positive for Vanderlei Luxemburgo's side this season has been their run in the Copa do Brasil, where they will feature in a quarter-final encounter against America Mineiro early next month.
As far as their away record is concerned, Corinthians have the worst record on the road of all 20 sides in the league and are the only team that has lost all five of their away matches, conceding 11 goals in that time while only scoring two in response.
The visitors' poor form on their travels is underlined when we look at their stats from last season which shows that they lost only six away matches across the whole of the season and took a total of 25 points in that time.
They will need an early goal in this one to calm the nerves around the camp but may find that difficult to achieve against a Santos side that have the joint-third-best defensive record of all sides at home this season.
Team News
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Camacho's two yellow cards will mean he is unavailable for selection for Hellmann, which should see Alison and Dodi continue in defensive midfield, though the latter is on four yellow cards and may be rotated with Rodrigo Fernandez as a safety measure.
Defenders Alex (thigh) and Felipe Jonatan (knee) are both yet to feature this season and will likely be out for at least another few weeks, while Luan Dias and Sandry are longer-term absentees.
Eduardo Bauermann has been granted special leave as his inquiry over a match-fixing scheme continues to be investigated, which should result in Santos going into this match unchanged in their defence.
Former Tottenham Hotspur and Barcelona midfielder Paulinho was handed yet another injury setback as reports in the week have confirmed that he will miss the rest of the season with a ruptured knee ligament.
He will be joined on the sidelines by Gustavo Silva (knee) and Victor Catillo (thigh), though the latter has been in training in recent weeks and could return to the squad by the end of the month.
Pedro failed to impress in the last match against Cuiaba and could make way for Yuri Alberto to reclaim his spot at the top of the pitch alongside the side's top scorer, Roger Guedes.
Santos possible starting lineup:
Paulo; Santos, Henrique, Messias, Inocencio; Alison, Dodi, Mendoza, Lima, Soteldo; Leonardo
Corinthians possible starting lineup:
Cassio; Mendez, Gil, Murillo; Biro, Vera, Maycon, Bidu, Augusto; Alberto, Guedes
We say: Santos 2-1 Corinthians
While Santos have certainly not been great this season, they have looked solid on their home patch and have proven a difficult side to break down, maintaining three clean sheets in their five home matches.
Corinthians have the firepower in their ranks and should register at least a goal in this one, but we do not think that it will be enough to secure them their first away points of the campaign.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Top tip
Devesh Jaganath
