SC Farense and Vitoria de Guimaraes bring their year to a close when they lock horns at the Estadio de Sao Luis in round 16 of the Portuguese Primeira Liga on Sunday.
Both sides head into the game off the back of contrasting results, with Os Vimaranenses dropping points in a somewhat disappointing stalemate against Nacional on Monday.
Match preview
© Imago
A rejuvenated Farense side secured their first Primeira Liga away victory since April as they held on to see off Famalicao a 2-1 when the two sides squared off at the Estadio Municipal de Famalicao last Saturday.
While they saw 74% of the ball possession, Famalicao found themselves trailing by two goals after Marco Matias and Miguel Menino hit the target for visitors before Oscar Aranda halved the deficit with an 80th-minute strike.
This was an instant response from Farense, who saw their four-game unbeaten run across all competitions come to an end on December 14, when they were beaten 1-0 by Gil Vicente courtesy of a second-half own goal from Lucas Africo.
Despite their recent upturn in form, Toze Marreco's men remain bottom but one in the Primeira Liga standings, having picked up just 12 points from their 15 games, but could move level with 12th-placed Estrela Amadora with a win this weekend.
While Farense will be looking to close the year on a high, they face the challenge of an opposing side whom they have failed to get the better of in any of their previous four encounters since February 2021.
© Imago
Elsewhere, Vitoria de Guimaraes were involved in a share of the spoils for the third consecutive game as they played out a 2-2 draw with Nacional at the Estadio Dom Afonso Henriques on Monday.
After falling behind to Isaac's ninth-minute opener, Tiago Silva and Nuno Santos found the back of the net to turn the game on its head, but substitute Joao Aurelio struck in the third minute of stoppage time to hand Nacional a hard-earned point.
This followed a 1-1 draw with Italian outfit Fiorentina in the Conference League on December 19, when Rolando Mandragora netted in the 87th minute to cancel out Gustavo Silva's 33rd-minute opener to force a share of the spoils.
Vitoria de Guimaraes have now gone four straight games without defeat and have lost just one their most recent nine games across all competitions while claiming four draws and four wins, including a 2-0 victory over Uniao Leiria in the Taca de Portugal fourth round on November 23.
This solid run of results saw Os Vimaranenses surge into second place in the Conference League standings, four points behind leaders Chelsea who boasted a 100% record, while they sit sixth in the Primeira Liga table with 23 points from 15 games.
While Guimaraes will be looking to return to winning ways this weekend, they will need to be at their best at the Estadio de Sao Luis as they have failed to win six of their last seven away matches across all competitions since claiming back-to-back victories over Pacos de Ferreira and Djurgarden back in October.
Team News
© Imago
Farense will head into the final game of the year without the services of 29-year-old defender Africo, who is suspended after crossing the yellow card threshold with his booking against Famalicao last time out.
In his absence, 30-year-old Artur Jorge will push for his ninth league start, teaming up with Claudio Falcao and Marco Moreno in the back three, while Matias, Dario Poveda and Elves Balde should retain their roles in the front three.
Following the departure of Rui Borges, who has replaced Joao Pereira at Sporting Lisbon, Vitoria de Guimaraes have named Daniel Sousa as the club's new head coach and the 40-year-old will be looking to begin his stint on a positive note.
For his first game at the helm of affairs, Sousa will be unable to name experienced defender Bruno Gaspar, who has missed each of the last four games through a muscle injury.
Jesus Ramirez and 33-year-old Nelson Oliveira also continue their spells on the sidelines while Croatian defender Toni Borevkovic is also set to sit out his sixth consecutive game through a muscle problem.
SC Farense possible starting lineup:
Velho; Jorge, Falcao, Moreno; Pastor, Neto, Menino, Poloni; Matias, Poveda, Balde
Vitoria de Guimaraes possible starting lineup:
Varela; Baio, Villanueva, Rivas, Mendes; Samu, J Silva, T Silva; Cesar, G Silva, Santos
We say: SC Farense 0-1 Vitoria de Guimaraes
Farnese know that victory could be a catalyst for a fine run of form to kickstart the new year as they look to pull clear of the danger zone. However, Guimaraes have been tough to crack of late and we fancy them to come away with all three points at the Estadio de Sao Luis.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Joshua Ojele
