On Sunday night, reigning Portuguese champions Benfica will look to boost their chances of retaining their crown when they welcome Moreirense to the Estadio da Luz.
A potential big confidence boost for Benfica against MarseilleAfter suffering a potentially crucial 2-1 defeat at title rivals Sporting last weekend, Benfica returned to winning ways on Thursday with a 2-1 win over Marseille in the Europa League quarter-final first leg.
The win was needed after the defeat against city rivals Sporting. Benfica are now massive underdogs for the title as Ruben Amorim’s team are now four points clear of the second-place champions, with a game in hand.
That means Benfica cannot afford any slip-ups and still needs Sporting to drop points in their remaining seven Liga games.
One recent positive for Benfica has been their home form. The Eagles are unbeaten in 17 Primeira Liga home games, having recorded 15 wins and two draws.
Moreirense heads to the capital in inconsistent recent formThe visitors’ recent form has been consistent, as they have won just once in their last five games in the Primeira Liga. Last time out, they drew 2-2 at home against Estrela.
The recent lack of victories in the Portuguese top flight has scuppered any hopes of the visitors mounting an outside top-four challenge. They are now 13 points adrift of the Liga’s top four.
The draw was a rare high-scoring encounter for Moreirense in the Portuguese top flight, as their previous nine Liga games had all produced under 2.5 goals.
Moreirense’s recent away form in the Primeira Liga is poor. They have lost four of their last five matches on their travels.
Like their recent top-flight games in general, Moreirense’s away games in the Primeira Liga have been low-scoring, with under 2.5 goals scored in their last four away games.
What am I backing?The win over Marseille will have boosted Benfica’s confidence, and I am backing the Eagles to record a second consecutive win in this clash.
