In one of the most anticipated high-profile games of the Portuguese Primeira Liga, Porto and Sporting Lisbon renew acquaintances at the Estadio do Dragao on Sunday.
With just four games left to go, this is undoubtedly the Leoes' most challenging task, and victory could see them clinch their 20th league title.
Match preview
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Porto picked up a crucial victory in their push for a top-three finish as they held firm to see off a resilient Casa Pia side 2-1 when the sides met at the Estadio Pina Manique.
After falling behind to Wanderson Galeno's 31st-minute opener, Casa Pia fought back into the game as Nuno Moreira restored parity in the 37th minute, but Nico Gonzalez netted in the 56th minute to hand the visitors a nervy victory.
This was a much-needed respite for Sergio Concicao's men, who had failed to win their previous three outings — picking up one point from a possible nine — a run which has threatened to derail their dreams of securing the Europa League spot.
Porto have won 19 of their 30 Primeira Liga matches while losing six and claiming five draws to collect 62 points and sit third in the league table, level on points with fourth-placed Braga in the Europa Conference League qualification spot.
The Dragoes now return home where they are unbeaten in all but one of their last 10 league matches, picking up seven wins and two draws since November — with a 2-1 loss to Vitoria de Guimaraes on April 7 being the exception.
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Over in the capital, Sporting Lisbon moved one step closer to the league title as they cruised to a comfortable 3-0 victory over Vitoria de Guimaraes when the sides squared off last Sunday.
In a one-sided affair at the Estadio Jose Alvalade, Pedro Goncalves put the hosts in front on the 30th-minute mark before in-form striker Viktor Gyokeres grabbed a brace to hand Guimaraes their seventh league defeat of the season.
After last weekend's results, Porto have now won seven games on the bounce across all competitions, including a penalty-shootout victory over rivals Benfica in the Taca de Portugal semi-finals on April 2.
With just four games to go, victory on Sunday could see Ruben Amorim's men open up a 10-point lead at the top of the table and be named champions should Benfica lose to Braga on Saturday.
However, Sporting Lisbon have managed just five wins in their last 20 games against Porto — while losing 10 and claiming five draws since August 2008 — and have failed to win their last seven league visits to the Estadio do Dragao since a 3-1 victory in April 2016.
Team News
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Porto will be without several key players down the spine of the squad as the likes of Fabio Cardoso (thigh), Zaidu Sanusi (ACL) and Ivan Marcano (ACL) continue their spells on the sidelines.
First-choice goalkeeper Diego Costa has missed the last two matches since coming off with a muscle injury following the game against Famalicao on April 13 and is out of contention for the hosts.
Andre Franco, Antonio Martinez, Ivan Jaime, and defender Jorge Sanchez will also play no part in Sunday's game as they have all been ruled out due to personal reasons.
Goncalves and Gyokeres were both on target to hand Sporting Lisbon a 2-0 victory in December's reverse fixture against Porto and the duo will be looking to deliver the goods again.
Gyokeres has been the Primeira Liga's best marksman with 24 goals in 29 matches and the 25-year-old should team up with Goncalves and Francisco Trincao at the attacking end of the pitch.
On the injury front, the Leoes will be without the services of Spanish goalkeeper Antonio Adan, who has been sidelined through a thigh problem.
Porto possible starting lineup:
Ramos; Mario , Otavio, Pepe, Wendell; Gonzalez, Varela; Conceicao, Pepe, Galeno; Taremi
Sporting Lisbon possible starting lineup:
Israel; St. Juste, Inacio, Coates; Catamo, Hjulmand, Braganca, Santos; Trincao, Gyokeres, Goncalves
We say: Porto 2-2 Sporting Lisbon
While Sporting Lisbon are currently firing on all cylinders, they have failed to win their last six games at the Estadio do Dragao and will be looking to end this dry spell. However, we predict that Porto will do just enough to hold out for a share of the spoils.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Joshua Ojele
