Fresh off the back of a humbling 7-1 defeat at the hands of Benfica, Maritimo play host to Vizela at the Estadio do Maritimo on Tuesday.
This will be the first-ever league meeting between the two sides who are separated by just one point in the Primeira Liga table and they will be looking to get one over the other.
Match preview
Maritimo were denied a second consecutive Primeira Liga win for the first time this season last Sunday when they were steamrollered 7-1 by a rampant Benfica side.
In an action-packed contest at the Estadio do Sport Lisboa e Benfica, Portuguese midfielder Rafa Silva turned in a performance of the highest quality as he scored one and assisted four others to inspire the hosts to all three points.
Prior to that, Vasco Seabra's men were on a three-game unbeaten run, claiming victories over Santa Clara and Pacos de Ferreira, with a 1-1 draw away to Boavista sandwiched between the two wins.
After stumbling into the season, when they managed just one win from their opening 11 games, a recent upturn in form has seen Maritimo rise to 10th place in the Primeira Liga standings.
However, given the compactness of the teams in the bottom half of the table, they are currently just three points above 16th-place Famalicao in the relegation playoff spot.
Vizela, on the other hand, stunned reigning Taca de Portugal champions Braga as they claimed a 1-0 win when the sides squared off in the last 16 of the competition last time out.
In a game where the visitors finished with nine men, 22-year-old midfielder Nuno Moreira broke the deadlock nine minutes into the game but it was enough to send the hosts through to the quarter-finals.
Alvaro Pacheco's men now turn their attention to the Primeira Liga where they suffered a humbling 4-0 defeat at the hands of Porto in their last outing when the sides met at the Estadio do FC Vizela on December 19.
Vizela have now managed just one win from their last 12 league outings, picking up seven draws and losing four in that time and this poor run of results sees them sit in 13th place on the log with 13 points from 14 games.
The Vizelenses major concern this season has been the lack of firepower up top as they boast one of the division's poorest attacking records with 14 goals scored so far.
- L
- L
- W
- D
- W
- L
- L
- D
- D
- L
- W
- L
- D
- W
- L
- W
- L
- W
Team News
Maritimo will take to the pitch without the services of Portuguese midfielder Xadas, who picked up a knee problem in November's game against Tondela.
Other than that, there are no concerns on the injury front for Seabra heading into Tuesday's game and we expect the 38-year-old manager to make some changes down the spine of the team.
Henrique could be pushed down to the substitutes' bench after he was hooked off at half time in the defeat to Benfica last time out, while Ali Alipour staked his claim for a return to the XI after coming off the bench to find the target.
Meanwhile, Vizela will have to cope with the absence of Ivanildo Fernandes after the 25-year-old defender sustained an injury in the game versus Braga on November 30.
He is joined on the visitors' injury table by Brazilian midfielder Claudemir, who is set to miss his sixth consecutive game through a muscle problem.
Maritimo possible starting lineup:
Victor; China, Leo, Junior, Winck; Mendes, Beltrame; Costa; Guitane, Alipour, Tageue
Vizela possible starting lineup:
Charles; Kouao, Wilson, Aidara, Ofori; Zagbayou, Paulo; Mendez, Samu, Moreira; Cassiano
We say: Maritimo 1-1 Vizela
Both sides head into Tuesday's game separated by just one point and three places in the league standings and this makes for an exciting affair. They are both evenly matched on paper and we predict the spoils will be shared in this one.
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 Maritimo win with a probability of 36.97%. A win for Vizela had a probability of 35.89% and a draw had a probability of 27.1%.
The most likely scoreline for a Maritimo win was 1-0 with a probability of 10.49%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-1 (8.05%) and 2-0 (6.56%). The likeliest Vizela win was 0-1 (10.3%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (12.88%). The actual scoreline of 2-0 was predicted with a 6.6% likelihood. Our data analysis correctly predicted that Maritimo would win this match.
