Sports Mole previews Wednesday’s Brasileiro clash between Cuiaba and Vitoria, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.
The bottom two sides in the Brasileiro, Cuiaba and Vitoria, battle at Arena Pantanal on Wednesday night in a rescheduled gameweek two fixture.
Both sides are winless at the start of the campaign and the hosts could leapfrog their promoted opponents if they claim maximum points.
Match preview
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Cuiaba have had a wretched start to the new campaign, underlined by five straight losses for Dourado, leading to Petit arriving in the managerial dugout.
The Portuguese manager’s first Serie A match ended in a 1-0 loss at Internacional last time out, but the 47-year-old will back himself to improve on the home side’s disappointing league start sooner or later.
Four of Cuiaba’s last six 90-minute games in all competitions have ended in wins since the managerial change, pointing to improved results for the cellar-dwelling hosts.
Whether they turn the tide on Wednesday remains to be seen, but the home support will be far more hopeful than they felt after a poor start to the new campaign.
Indeed, Petit will be keen to see motivated players battling to secure maximum points to take them above the visitors in the standings.
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Vitoria have not had the best return to the competition, losing five of their six games and remain winless heading into the rescheduled encounter.
The disappointing sequence has seen Thiago Carpini replace Leo Conde midway through May, even if it has not translated to improved results.
Vitoria have lost two on the trot under Carpini, suffering a 2-1 loss in the Copa do Brasil against Botafogo and beaten by Atletico Goianiense in the new head coach’s first league match in charge.
Leao da Barra seek to end their four-match winless league run — six straight losses in all competitions — this week, but it remains to be seen if that is possible for a side without the seeming capacity to keep clean sheets, underlined by the failure to do so since March.
Ten matches have passed since back-to-back shutouts in the Copa do Nordeste — a 1-0 win over Fortaleza and a 3-0 triumph against Treze — and it is telling that Vitoria have won just one fixture in the following two months, an awful run they hope to end at Cuiaba.
Cuiaba Brasileiro form:
Cuiaba form (all competitions):
Vitoria Brasileiro form:
Vitoria form (all competitions):
Team News
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Derik Lacerda (muscle), Lucas Fernandes (thigh) and Filipe Augusto (muscle) are not expected to play any part for Cuiaba due to injury.
While the hosts have fired blanks in the league, Isidro Pitta (four) and Fernando Sobral (three) notched multiple goals in the Copa Sudamericana group stage, and they hope to come up trumps for Petit’s side in midweek.
Patric Calmon (straight red) and Dudu (two yellows) are suspended for Vitoria after dismissals against Atletico Goianiense.
The visitors are without the injured Mateus Goncalves (knee), Rodrigo Andrade (calf), Raul Caceres (heel), Everaldo (thigh) and Felipe Vieira (knee).
Cuiaba possible starting lineup:
Walter; Alexandre, Marilon, B. Alves, Ramon; Sobral, Mineiro, Borges; Clayson, Pitta, M. Alves
Vitoria possible starting lineup:
Arcanjo; Lepo, Uvini, Leonardo, Esteves; Oliveira, Naldi, Matheuzinho, Junior; Janderson, Alerrando
We say: Cuiaba 2-0 Vitoria
Despite firing blanks in every Brasileiro game since the start of the season, Cuiaba have shown signs of life under Petit, and they should back themselves against Vitoria to record maximum points, thus avoiding a sixth straight loss.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.