Vitoria de Guimaraes will host Penafiel in the Round of 16 of the Taca de Portugal on Thursday. The visitors want to snap their five-game losing streak on the road. The hosts are looking to win their fourth straight home game in all competitions.
Preview (Vitoria de Guimaraes vs. Penafiel)
Vitoria de Guimaraes’ run of six games without a loss in all competitions began last Saturday. They dramatically salvaged a point from a 1-1 draw with Braga. Thanks to a goal by Vitor Carvalho in the second half, Os Arsenalistas were set to win all three points. Vitoria’s replacement Joao Mendes scored an equalizer in the 98th minute. With 30 points from 16 games, Alvaro Pacheco’s team is presently sitting fifth in the Primeira Liga. They are three points behind Braga in fourth position and five points behind Porto in third.
Victoria is currently preparing for three straight home games in every competition, starting with Thursday’s match against Penafiel in the Taca de Portugal, which they won for the first and only time so far in 2013. To advance to the quarterfinals for just the second time in the previous eight years, the Conquerors must defeat a team from outside the top flight in Penafiel. They defeated lower-league teams Moncarapachense and Vilaverdense by an overall score of 7-2 in the previous two rounds.
After winning a penalty shootout against Valadares Gaia in the second round, Penafiel advanced to the Taca de Portugal final 16 for the first time since 2016–17. They also defeated Santa Maria and Vitoria Setubal in the third and fourth rounds, respectively. Since then, the Rubro-Negros have played in five second-tier games with varying degrees of success. They have managed to win three straight games. It includes their 2-1 victory over Vilaverdense at home last weekend. Gabriel Barbosa and Adilio Santos’ goals in the first half of the match allowed Penafiel to secure all three points and move up to 14th in the LigaPro standings, five points clear of the relegation zone.
Team News
Telmo Arcanjo, a midfielder for Vitoria de Guimaraes, is the sole player sidelined by an injury this season. He is still recovering from a cruciate ligament issue. On Thursday, backup goalkeeper Charles, who participated in the last two Taca de Portugal games. He is anticipated to take Bruno Varela’s spot as the starting shot-stopper. Toni Borevkovic, on the other hand, will look to hold onto his spot in the back three alongside Jorge Fernandes and Tomas Ribeiro. Mendes will be vying to start in midfield after coming on as a substitute and scoring a late equalizer last time out. Andre Silva, who has scored a team-high seven goals this season, may stay up front.
Penafiel’s captain, Leandro Teixeira, along with Joao Miguel and Ruben Pereira should form a solid three-man defense, as predicted by Cristovao. With six goals apiece, Gabriel Barbosa and Robinho are leading the Rubro-Negros’ goal total thus far this season. Both forwards are anticipated to play in the final third on Thursday.
Vitoria de Guimaraes 3-1 Penafiel
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