Atletico Mineiro v Fluminense

One of the biggest matches in the Brazilian Serie A this week, sees second placed Fluminense, take on a struggling Atletico Mineiro at the Mineirão, in Belo Horizonte. It would take plenty to go in Flu’s favour for them to win the league, but if they keep plugging away and trying to hunt down Palmeiras, anything could happen.

After leading Atletico Mineiro to a league, Cup and State championship title in 2021, Cuca’s return in August came with great excitement, but things haven’t gone according to plan in the games following his hiring. Since joining the club for a third spell, Atletico have won just twice, lost four and drawn five in all competitions. During this period, Galo have scored nine times, whilst conceding 13.

They simply must improve if they want to play Copa Libertadores football next season. Failure to do so could be a catastrophe for Atletico. Last time out, they took on league-leaders Palmeiras and despite having an xG of 1.87 compared to Palmeiras’ 1.60, Galo suffered a 0-1 home loss. Atletico will have the return of Junior Alonso who is back from international duty, as well as left-back Rubens, who was suspended during the defeat to Palmeiras.

It the polar opposite for Fluminense who have been back to playing at their best in recent weeks and have moved up to second place in the table after some impressive results. On Wednesday evening, Flu hosted Juventude and after two wins on the spin, they went into the game brimming with confidence which was shown on the field.  Two goals in each half were enough to see the Rio club run out 4-0 winners in what was a truly dominant display. Their xG of 2.52 was far greater than Juve’s 0.40. In more positive new for Flu, Caio Paulista, Manoel and David Braz can all return to action following suspension.

Coming into this matchup, despite one side being more confident than the other, it’s impossible to write off a squad as talented as Atletico Mineiro, especially at home. Despite their struggles this season, they still have the ability to cause Flu some issues. The result of this game could go either way but one thing to expect is goals. Both sides play entertaining football and create chances, which should make for a cracking Saturday evening in Belo Horizonte.

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Athletico Paranaense v Juventude

Copa Libertadores finalists Athletico Paranaense host the league’s bottom side, Juventude at the Arena da Baixada. Both sides haven’t enjoyed the best of times in recent weeks and will be eager to gain some form and momentum, going into the final few months of the season.  

Athletico Paranaense’s form has dropped off since they secured a place in October’s Copa Libertadores final and they’ll be keen on putting things right, as they prepare for the final in Guayaquil. They currently sit sixth in the league standings and are without a win in their last three league matches: with two draws and a loss.

On Tuesday evening they took on Santos away from home and suffered a 2-0 defeat. Athletico just edged the possessions statistics but failed to create the better of the chances, as Santos created a greater xG at 1.46 compared to Athletico’s 1.07. They will be hoping for an improvement in this outing. The hosts will be without Matheus Felipe and Alex Santana due to suspension, but will see the return of Pedrinho and Canobbio, the latter of which was on international duty with Uruguay during the week.

Juventude’s relegation is almost a guarantee, they sit rock bottom of the league standings, and haven’t won in nine matches, since beating Ceara back in late July. Last time out, they took on Fluminense and took a 4-0 battering. Juve put in a poor display and didn’t cause Fluminense any problems. They allowed Flu to have an xG of 2.42, whilst only managing an xG on 0.40. They simply have to improve.

Juve are 12 points adrift of survival. Anderson Leite, Moares and Kelvi miss out here due to injury. Despite Athletico not winning in their last three, they take on a Juve side who don’t look motivated which should make it a comfortable evening for the host’s.

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Avai v Atletico Goianiense

There’s a huge clash at the bottom of the Brazilian Serie A, as 18^th place Avai take on 19^th place Atletico Goianiense. It’s a match that both teams will be eager to win, but scared to lose with so much at stake.

Avai had a decent victory over Atletico Mineiro in their last home game, but on the road, on Sunday evening, they failed to back this up, instead losing 4-0 to Sao Paulo with a disappointing performance. Their xG of 0.38 was way below Sao Paulo’s 1.58 and they need to improve going forward if they want to remain in the league.

Prior to the game against Sao Paulo, Avai were unbeaten in three matches and will be hoping to rekindle that form. Avai have a fairly decent home record for a side in the bottom four with; six wins, four draws and four losses. They will need the home crowd here once more to steer them to victory. Raniele can return following a ban, whilst Bruno Silva is suspended.

It was another day of misery on Wednesday for Atletico Goianiense who suffered their fifth defeat on the bounce. This time, it came at the hands of Corinthians. Roger Guedes opened the scoring for the hosts before Wellington Rato pulled Atletico back on level terms moments later. It looked like Dragão were going to hang on for a point, until a 88^th minute winner from Yuri Alberto ensured the 3 points went to Corinthians.

Following the defeat, manager Eduardo Baptista resigned from the club after only six games at the helm. During this period, Atletico won once and lost five. Assistant manager Eduardo Souza is expected to lead the team for the rest of 2022, giving the club extra time to find a manager for next season, as well as saving them extra cash. They’ll be hoping that Souza can lead the club to survival. Atletico sit second from bottom, nine points from safety.

Avai have always proved to be a tricky task at home for any opposition and that isn’t good news for Atletico, who have the fourth worst away record in the league, with only one win from their 14 matches on the road. With that in mind, Avai will be confident of picking up an important three points in this match.  

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