In search of a sixth consecutive win in all competitions, Atletico Mineiro welcome Chapecoense to the Mineirao on Tuesday.
The clash in Belo Horizonte draws the curtain on matchday 5 of the new Brasileiro season, which has been nothing short of enthralling so far.
Match preview
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Atletico Mineiro recorded a third league win on the bounce after defeating Internacional at the Estadio Beira-Rio on Wednesday.
Cuca's men took the lead in the second minute through Nathan and held on firm to secure back-to-back 1-0 away victories.
The Alvinegro have recovered splendidly from an opening defeat to current leaders Fortaleza, picking up maximum points while also being near-impenetrable at the back.
They are third in the Brasileiro Serie A table as things stand, just a single point off top spot having played one fewer game.
Tuesday's hosts will expect a stern test in their next outing, as they have only beaten the visitors once in the last seven meetings between the sides dating back to 2017.
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Chapecoense were involved in a share of the spoils for the second game running following a 1-1 draw versus Sao Paulo on Wednesday.
Kaio Nunes's second-half strike eight minutes after coming off the bench cancelled out Eder's opener to earn a point for Jair Ventura's men.
It is now four games in all competitions for the Verdao without a win since they edged past ABC FC in the Copa do Brasil on June 2.
Tuesday's visitors are in the relegation zone at the moment and have conceded the second-most goals in the entire division.
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Team News
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Atletico Mineiro's Junior Alonso is on duty with the Paraguay national team at the ongoing Copa America and as a result, he is ruled out for the game.
Rafael continues to wait for his appearance of the season for the hosts due to a knee injury, while Federico Zaracho has missed his side's last two outings through illness.
Chapecoense are nearly down to the bare bones for the match, with up to nine players currently facing spells on the sidelines.
Alan Santos, Tiepo, Mike Dos Santos and Kadu are not expected to be in action for the visitors as they continue to struggle with injuries.
Joining the aforementioned quartet on the treatment table are Busanello, Derlan, Fabinho, Geuvanio and 30-year-old Joilson.
Atletico Mineiro possible starting lineup:
Everson; Arana, Rever, Gabriel, Guga; Allan, Tche Tche, Jair; Nathan, Hyoran, Hulk
Chapecoense possible starting lineup:
Paulo; Ezequiel, Santana, Ignacio, Ribeiro; Gomes, Lima, Ravanelli; Fernandinho, Leite, Ramon
We say: Atletico Mineiro 2-0 Chapecoense
The hosts have a higher momentum coming into the game due to their recent run of results. While the visitors have excelled in the fixture of late, we are backing the home team to claim all three points 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 Atletico Mineiro win with a probability of 49.71%. A draw had a probability of 25.5% and a win for Chapecoense had a probability of 24.74%.
The most likely scoreline for an Atletico Mineiro win was 1-0 with a probability of 12.03%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-1 (9.36%) and 2-0 (9.29%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (12.13%), while for a Chapecoense win it was 0-1 (7.86%). The actual scoreline of 1-1 was predicted with a 12.1% likelihood.
