Casa Pia will be looking to secure consecutive home wins for the first time this season when they welcome SC Farense to the Estadio Pina Manique in round 11 of the Primeira Liga on Saturday.
The Leoes de Faro, meanwhile, set out in search of their first away win in the league since beating Estrela Amadora 3-0 on April 29 as they look to pull clear of the bottom of the table.
Match preview
© Imago
Casa Pia failed to make it three wins in a row for the first time since November 2022 as they were held to a 2-2 draw by Rio Ave at the Estadio dos Arcos last Saturday.
In an action-packed first half, goals from Nuno Moreira and Cassiano put Casa Pia up twice in the game but Clayton and Martim Neto hit back for Rio Ave on each occasion to force a share of the spoils.
Prior to that, Os Gansos snapped their three-game winless run with an emphatic 5-0 victory over Campeonato de Portugal side Amora in the Taca de Portugal third round on October 19, one week before beating Nacional 1-0 in the league through Ruben Kluivert's first-half strike.
With last weekend's stalemate, Casa Pia have now gone unbeaten in six of their most recent seven Primeira Liga matches, claiming three wins and three draws since kicking off the campaign with three back-to-back defeats against Boavista, Benfica and Santa Clara respectively.
Having secured a ninth-placed finish last season, Joao Pereira's men have picked up 14 points from their 10 league matches this term to sit ninth in the standings, two points behind eighth-placed Moreirense.
© Imago
Over in the South, the defeats continued to pile up for Farense as they were beaten 2-1 by a rampant Benfica side when the two teams squared off at the Estadio de Sao Luis last Saturday.
Spanish striker Dario Poveda broke the deadlock with a quarter of an hour played to put the home side in front, but Benfica upped the ante as Alvaro Carreras and Vangelis Pavlidis found the back of the net to turn the game on its head.
This followed a 2-0 defeat against Braga at the Estadio Braga Municipal on October 27, when Ismael Gharbi and Amine El Ouazzani scored in either half to end the Leoes de Faro's run of two back-to-back victories in all competitions.
Toze Marreco's men have now failed to win nine of their 10 games to start the Primeira Liga campaign, losing eight and claiming one draw — with their only victory coming on October 6, when they defeated Estoril Praia 1-0 courtesy of a 95th-minute strike from Raul Silva.
Farense's struggles this season has been owing to their lack of cutting edge at the attacking end of the pitch, where they have scored just four goals so far, two fewer than any other side in the division, as they sit rock-bottom in the table with just four points from a possible 30.
Team News
© Imago
Casa Pia remain without the services of summer signing Claudio Mendes, who is yet to make an appearance as he continues his journey to full fitness since sustaining an injury in May.
He is joined on Os Gansos' injury table by the duo of Kiki Afonso and 26-year-old defender Duplexe Tchamba, who are currently recuperating from leg and muscle injuries respectively.
Farense have their fair share of injury concerns heading into the weekend as Felipe Soares, Marco Matias and 32-year-old forward Tomane continue their spells on the sidelines.
Kaique Pereira was an unused substitute against Benfica, having returned from a forearm injury that kept him out since July, and the 21-year-old should be involved in the matchday squad on Saturday.
Veteran midfielder Neto will also play no part in this weekend's matchup due to a one-game suspension after crossing the yellow card threshold with his booking against Benfica last time out.
Casa Pia possible starting lineup:
Sequeira; Goulart, Kluivert, Zolotic; Larrazabal, Moreira, Segovia, Kraev; Lelo, Svensson, Cassiano
SC Farense possible starting lineup:
Velho; Pastor, Jorge, Africo, Moreno; Victor, Falcao, Silva; Menino, Poveda, Balde
We say: Casa Pia 2-0 SC Farense
It has been a turbulent start to the campaign for Farense, who find themselves rock-bottom in the table, having managed just four points from their opening 10 matches.
Having also stumbled into the season, Casa Pia have turned a corner in recent weeks and we are backing them to extend their fine run of results with another solid display in front of their home supporters.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Joshua Ojele
