Juventude v Avai

There’s a massive game between two sides in the bottom four this weekend as Juventude host Avai at the Estádio Alfredo Jaconi in Rio Grande do Sul. Juve currently sit at rock bottom of the league and are six points adrift of their opponents and eight points away from survival. Defeat for Juve and it would take something of a small miracle for them to remain in the top-flight.

Juventude comes into this crunch game in horrendous form. They are without a victory in their last 5 attempts and suffered a humiliating 4-0 bashing at the hands of state rivals Internacional on Monday evening. The defeat was Juve’s fourth in five matches. During their latest beating, Juve only had one attempt on target and allowed Inter to have 13 at their goal. They are desperate for an improvement in performance. Their XG was an abysmal 0.19 compared to Inter’s high of 4.21. This was the third match in a row that Juve had been outperformed on expected goals, something which has happened in six of their last eight matches. Umberto Louzer will be without Anderson Leite here who has picked up an injury, which only adds to their problems.

Also struggling for wins is Avai who are without a victory in their last seven matches, with five wins and two draws. Their previous two games have seen them lose by just a single goal. Last time out, they took on Coritiba at home and a late goal from Fabricio Daniel was enough to send Avai home empty-handed. What was even more frustrating for Leão da Ilha was that they had a greater XG than their opponents with 1.41 compared to Coxa’s 1.09. They will be eager to return to winning ways here, in an attempt to lift them out of the bottom four.

Coming into this game, it’s difficult to pick a winner as both sides currently, don’t know how to win. However, the previous three meetings between the pair have seen over 1.5 goals, which is well on the cards here.

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Flamengo v Ceará

In Sunday’s early kick-off, Flamengo host Ceará at the Maracanã where they will be eager for a positive result to keep the pressure on league leaders Palmeiras. The match will see manager Dorival Junior take on his old club for the first time since jumping ship. In the previous meeting, Junior’s Ceara earned a 2-2 draw against Paulo Souza’s Flamengo, in a classic affair.

Last Sunday, Flamengo took on rivals Botafogo in a grudge match. With an eye on their Libertadores fixture in midweek, Flamengo rotated, as they have done since the hiring of Junior. A second-half goal from Arturo Vidal was enough to give the Rubro Negro their third successive 1-0 win at the Estádio Nilton Santos in the league. Then in midweek, they took on Argentine side Vélez Sarsfield in the Copa Libertadores second leg and enjoyed a thumping 4-0 victory, putting up expected goals of 2.11 compared to Velez’s 0.22. Flamengo are now unbeaten in their last 15 matches in all competitions and will be eager to carry on their tremendous form.

It’s the polar opposite for Ceara who are without a victory in their last eight matches with four wins and four draws. Last weekend, they played host to Athletico Paranaense and settled for a point in a 0-0 draw. They will feel slightly disappointed they couldn’t pick up the three points as they had an XG of 2.45 compared to Furaçao’s 1.32, showing they created enough to end their drought. Lucho González will make his managerial debut here, he was brought in after the sacking of Marquinhos Santos on the 14th of August. He will be without Dentinho, Diego and Leo Rafael who all have injury problems.

Coming into this game, with Flamengo looking unstoppable and Ceara in a bit of trouble, the Rubro Negro should pick up the three points here and will hope to score a few goals in the process, giving new manager González, a tough first day at the office.

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Fortaleza v Botafogo

After a horrendous start to the season, Fortaleza are now flying and sitting in 13th place in the league, which is a remarkable turnaround considering only a few weeks ago they were in the bottom four and couldn’t buy a win. A change in formation and a few new faces has helped the upturn in form for Juan Pablo Vojvoda’s men, which has seen Fortaleza five straight league matches. Last weekend, a first-half goal from Juninho Capixaba was enough to secure the north-eastern club the three points. Despite the win, Fortaleza was below their opponents on expected goals for the first time in three games and they will be hoping to be more creative in this outing. Fortaleza have no suspension to worry about for this clash.

It’s quite the opposite for Luis Castro’s men, who have only won one of their last ten matches in all competitions. This run of form has seen Botafogo slump to 14th place as they sit just two points above the drop zone. Improvement is needed for Fogo, who last time out suffered a 1-0 defeat to Rio de Janeiro rivals Flamengo in a grudge match. A single goal from Arturo Vidal was enough to pile the misery on Botafogo. The recent run has left fans questioning if Castro is the right man for the job and he will be hoping he can turn the club’s fortunes around sooner, rather than later. Their XG has been below their opponents in 11 of their last 12 matches, showing Botafogo need to start creating better opportunities. Castro will be without the suspended Renzo Saravia for this duel.

With Fortaleza in fantastic form and looking like they can challenge for a place in continental competition next season and a raucous crowd behind them, they should pick up the three points here against a struggling Botafogo side.

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