Fresh off the back of an emphatic 4-0 victory over Besiktas in the Champions League, Sporting Lisbon travel to the Estadio Capital do Movel to face Pacos de Ferreira on Sunday.
The hosts are presently on a run of six league games without a win and will be looking to put an end to this dry spell this weekend and move into the top half of the Primeira Liga standings.
Match preview
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Pacos de Ferreira's hunt for a third league win continues as they were forced to settle for a 1-1 draw away to Moreirense last Monday.
Following a drab first half at the Parque de Jogos Comendador Joaquim de Almeida Freitas, Lucas Silva put the visitors ahead four minutes after the hour mark before substitute Andre Luis netted four minutes away from time to force a share of the spoils.
Prior to that, Jorge Simao's side eased into the fourth round of the Taca de Portugal courtesy of a 3-0 win over Aguias Moradal on October 17, before playing out consecutive goalless draws with Arouca in the league and Braga in the Taca da Liga in their two subsequent outings.
Pacos de Ferreira head into Sunday's game on a six-game winless run in the Primeira Liga, claiming five draws and losing 2-1 to Porto since a 1-0 victory over Portimonense on September 29.
This dry spell has seen them drop to 10th place in the table after picking up 11 points from 10 games and it can be pinned on their lack of firepower in attack, where they have scored just nine goals this season.
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Meanwhile, Sporting Lisbon continued their charge to defend the title as they saw off a dogged Vitoria de Guimaraes side 1-0 on home turf last Saturday.
In a game where the reigning champions failed to convert several clear-cut chances, central defender Sebastian Coates continued his fine goalscoring form as he netted his fourth goal in four games to end the visitors' four-game unbeaten streak.
This was followed by a thrilling 4-0 victory over Turkish champions Besiktas when the sides squared off at the Estadio Jose Alvalade in Group C of the Champions League last Wednesday.
A brace from Portuguese talisman Pedro Goncalves and Paulinho's 41st-minute goal put Leoes three goals up heading into the break before Paris Saint-Germain loanee Pablo Sarabia completed the rout in the 56th minute.
Ruben Amorim's men, who are now tied on 26 points with Porto at the top of the Primeira Liga standings, head into Sunday's game on a seven-game winning streak, stretching back to a 1-0 loss against Dortmund back in September.
Sporting Lisbon will feel confident of moving in the same vein this weekend as they take on an opposing side who they have defeated in each of the last 11 meetings between the sides, dating back to a 1-1 draw in August 2015.
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Team News
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Pacos de Ferreira remain without the services of Portuguese defender Joao Vigario, who picked up a knee problem in the Conference League qualifier against Larne back in August.
Other than that, there are no concerns on the injury front for the Pacenses to contend with and we expect Simao to take a defensive approach and formation in this game.
Silva ended his 10-game goal drought with his strike against Moreirense last time out and we expect the Brazilian forward to handle business in the final third once again.
Meanwhile, Manchester City loanee Pedro Porro, who has two goals and one assist to his name, was forced to come off after just 17 minutes against Besiktas through an injury and the 22-year-old is expected to miss Sunday's clash.
His replacement in the aforementioned game Ricardo Esgaio put on a sensational off-the-bench performance and the former Braga man could come in for his fifth league start of the season.
Portuguese youngster Tiago Tomas is set to sit out his fourth game on the bounce after the 19-year-old sustained a thigh problem against Moreirense two Saturdays ago.
Pacos de Ferreira possible starting lineup:
Ferreira; Fonseca, Ramos, Maracas, Antunes; Eustaquio, Carlos; Ferreira, Delgado, Silva; Denilson
Sporting Lisbon possible starting lineup:
Adan; Neto, Coates, Feddal; Esgaio, Palhinha, Braganca, Reis; Goncalves, Sarabia, Paulinho
We say: Pacos de Ferreira 0-2 Sporting Lisbon
Pacos de Ferreira head into this game on an 11-game losing streak against the visitors and will have to be at their absolute best to avoid another defeat. However, looking at the gulf in class and quality between the two sides, and considering Sporting Lisbon's current blistering run of results, we are tipping them to extend their dominance in this fixture and claim all three points.
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 Sporting Lisbon win with a probability of 56.23%. A draw had a probability of 24.2% and a win for Pacos de Ferreira had a probability of 19.61%.
The most likely scoreline for a Sporting Lisbon win was 0-1 with a probability of 12.97%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 0-2 (10.89%) and 1-2 (9.6%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (11.43%), while for a Pacos de Ferreira win it was 1-0 (6.81%). The actual scoreline of 0-2 was predicted with a 10.9% likelihood. Our data analysis correctly predicted that Sporting Lisbon would win this match.
