Atletico Mineiro will look to record a fourth straight Campeonato Brasileiro victory on Saturday, when they make the short trip to take on America Mineiro.
A run of three consecutive wins has seen the visitors rise to fourth spot in the Brazilian top flight, while their opponents will aim to bounce back from a disappointing 4-0 defeat to Fortaleza last time out.
Match preview
© Reuters
In their first season back in the top flight after winning promotion last season, America Mineiro got off to a fairly disappointing start, collecting just one point from their opening five games.
Defeats to Athletico Paranaense, Corinthians, Flamengo and Palmeiras saw them drop immediately to the bottom end of the division, triggering the departure of promotion-winning manager Lisca.
Consecutive 1-1 draws then followed and provided more encouragement under the new tutelage of Vagner Mancini, firstly taking a point from a home clash with Juventude as Juninho equalised with an 85th-minute penalty to see them earn a result.
The Coelho then played out a draw at home against Internacional as Rodrigo Dourado equalised for the visitors in the final 15 minutes after Ribamar's opener.
Mancini's appointment then looked even more inspired as America Mineiro recorded back-to-back wins to open their account for the season, firstly coming out of a dramatic game with Bahia as 4-3 winners, having led 4-1 until the 91st minute thanks to goals from Felipe Azevedo, Juninho, Ribamar and Adilson dos Anjos Oliveira.
That was followed by an eye-catching 2-0 win over Santos as Joao Paulo and Carlos Alberto found the net, before they were quickly dragged back down to earth by a 4-0 thrashing at the hands of Fortaleza last time out.
Having just suffered their fifth league defeat of the season, Mancini's men will be desperate to make a return to winning ways to continue their gradual climb away from the drop zone, having escaped the bottom four thanks to that recent upturn in form.
© Reuters
Their opponents come into the game in search of a fourth consecutive league victory, having quickly climbed the table.
After a relatively disappointing start to the season, collecting 10 points from seven games, Cuca's men have kicked into gear and recorded three straight wins to move into the top four.
That run started with a convincing 4-1 home victory over Atletico Goianiense, as Matias Zaracho and Ignacio Fernandez netted two goals each to help their side bounce back from consecutive defeats.
The Alvinegro then added to that with a 1-0 win over Cuiaba thanks to another Fernandez goal inside the first 30 minutes.
Their winning run was stretched to three games last time out with an impressive 2-1 win over Flamengo on Wednesday, as Jefferson Savarino netted a quick brace early in the second half before Willian Arao pulled a goal back in vain in the dying minutes.
Cuca's side now level on points with second-placed Athletico Paranaense and three points behind Palmeiras and Bragantino at the top of the table, and with Bragantino and El Paranaense squaring off on Saturday, Atletico Mineiro have a strong chance of breaking into the top three if they are able to record a victory on their travels.
- L
- D
- D
- W
- W
- L
- D
- L
- L
- W
- W
- W
Team News
© Reuters
America Mineiro are expected to come into Saturday's game with a full squad available to choose from, with no notable absentees through injury or suspension.
Despite suffering a 4-0 thrashing last time out, Mancini could opt to keep his side unchanged, having previously recorded an impressive win over Santos with the same 11 players.
The line will be led by Ribamar, who has netted two league goals so far this season.
Atletico Mineiro have an abundance of attacking options to choose from, with Jefferson Savarino and Matias Zaracho in good goalscoring form in recent weeks, although they could remain without Ignacio Fernandez, who was absent last time out after hitting three goals in the previous two games.
Experienced forward Hulk will look to add to his tally of two goals and four assists in 10 Brasileiro games so far this season.
At the other end of the pitch, the back three of Junior Alonso, Rever and Nathan Silva should remain untouched, shielding Everson between the sticks.
America Mineiro possible starting lineup:
Cavichioli; Eduardo, Bauermann, Anderson, Paulo; Ricardo, Juninho; Toscano, Azevedo, Rodolfo; Ribamar
Atletico Mineiro possible starting lineup:
Everson; Alonso, Rever, Silva; Mariano, Arana, Allan, Tche, Zaracho; Hulk, Savarino
We say: America Mineiro 0-2 Atletico Mineiro
The visitors should have more than enough quality to get past their local rivals on Saturday, especially considering they are in hot pursuit of a spot in the top three.
Their impressive collection of attacking talent could overwhelm the America Mineiro back line, while they have looked solid at the back and will hope for a clean sheet.
Top tip
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Atletico Mineiro win with a probability of 45.76%. A draw had a probability of 28.2% and a win for America Mineiro had a probability of 26.06%.
The most likely scoreline for an Atletico Mineiro win was 0-1 with a probability of 14.14%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 0-2 (9.28%) and 1-2 (8.49%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (12.94%), while for an America Mineiro win it was 1-0 (9.87%). The actual scoreline of 0-1 was predicted with a 14.1% likelihood. Our data analysis correctly predicted a 0-1 win for Atletico Mineiro in this match.
