Primeira Liga weekend preview: Jornada 26

As another international break ends, PortuGOAL has a new weekly feature courtesy of Albert and Barney from the Long Ball Futebol podcast - a regular preview of the upcoming weekend action. Today, we look ahead to Jornada 26 of the 2022/23 Primeira Liga as domestic football in Portugal embarks on an uninterrupted stretch of nine games until the end of the season.

Whilst Benfica have all but wrapped up the title, the fight for the rest of the European places continues. Porto and Braga are battling it out for the runners-up spot and the second automatic Champions League place, but Sporting are seemingly on the up and will be ready to pounce if one or both northern clubs slip up.

There’s a 3-horse race for the last Europa Conference League spot (5th). Vitória have a 2-point lead over Arouca and Casa Pia, but with 9 games to go that is a slender advantage.

At the bottom of the league Paços de Ferreira continue their attempt at what would be one of the greatest ever escapes from relegation. The Beavers had zero wins and just 3 points after the first 15 rounds of the season, but are now on the cusp of at least securing a relegation playoff spot. 

Top four – Braga to be tested in Chaves

The leading quartet all have winnable games this weekend. Sporting face bottom of the table Santa Clara at home on Saturday, while on Sunday Braga are away at Chaves, Benfica away at Rio Ave, and Porto at home to Portimonense.

Not too much to worry about for any of the top 4 this weekend then. The biggest chance of an upset in my opinion will be Braga’s trip to Chaves, an away game which has proved difficult for some with Chaves maintaining a solid home record this season, although losses to Sporting and Porto in the Estádio Municipal de Chaves in the last 5 weeks will give Braga confidence that they can get the job done and maintain the pressure on Porto in second place. In the back of their minds will be the 1-0 loss they suffered to Chaves at home in the first half of the season, thanks to a Chaves goal in the opening 90 seconds which Braga never recovered from. Braga will have retribution on their mind in a potentially interesting game up north. 

Soares tries to halt Estoril slump

As often is the case, it’s outside of the top 4 where the really interesting fixtures can be found, starting with Friday night when Estoril host Gil Vicente. Estoril’s troubles are well documented, and their poor form has been discussed on our podcast most weeks having lost their last 9 games in the league - the worst run of form out of any top flight club.

Estoril have turned to Ricardo Soares to turn their season around, a manager who recently had great success in Portugal with Friday’s opponents Gil Vicente, guiding the Barçelos side to European competition for the first time in the club’s history. His connection to Gil Vicente makes this tie all the more interesting, with Gil Vicente sitting two places and seven points above Estoril in the league table, but in a generally much healthier position having themselves climbed out of the relegation zone through a great run of form in 2023 under new manager Daniel Sousa.

Plenty of intrigue in this game, and worth keeping an eye on whether Ricardo Soares’ Estoril will fall to a 10th consecutive loss at the hands of his former club, or if they’ll finally show some signs of improvement.

There are more fascinating match-ups to enjoy on Saturday, with two relative newcomers to top flight football Vizela and Casa Pia facing off in Vizela.

These are two clubs promoted in the last two seasons who have shown that even small clubs with few resources can make an impact on the Primeira Liga through a combination of good football, a clear identity, and excellent scouting. This is not your run-of-the-mill mid-table Primeira Liga encounter. Expect two sides playing great football to put on a show.

Paços eye Vitória scalp

Later on Saturday, Vitória welcome Paços de Ferreira to the Estádio Dom Afonso Henriques, and whilst 11 places and 24 points separate these two teams in the table, Vitória have lost their last two games in the league including a surprise home loss to Arouca, and with Paços showing some real grit and determination in recent weeks to turn around their season in an unlikely bid for Primeira Liga survival, they could provide a very uncomfortable test for the Minho side.

Finally, all listeners to our show will know we are big advocates of ‘Monday Night Futebol’, those unlikely gems hidden away on Monday evenings, often overlooked but always excellent spectacles. This week’s game looks like another great option for any discerning Primeira Liga fan as Famalicão host Arouca.

Arouca’s success this season has been rightly praised as the side who were strongly tipped for relegation for the second season in a row prove all the doubters wrong by being well in the hunt for European football alongside Casa Pia and Vitória.

Famalicão’s success has been less obvious, and with the club sitting 9th in the league you’d be forgiven for dismissing them as having a decidedly average season, but their form in the last six games (4 wins and 2 losses) has seen them rise from 15th place, the culmination of some great work in the second half of the season.

The last time these two sides played each other (also on a Monday night) we were treated to a 5 goal thriller, in a game which included 2 candidates for the goal of the season.

  

Five players to keep an eye on this weekend:

Tiago Gouveia (Estoril): Estoril’s top scorer on loan from Benfica has been one of the few positives in a very difficult season, and could be vital if Estoril are to get a much-needed win against Gil Vicente.

Nico Gaitán (Paços de Ferreira): A certified legend who is experiencing something of a renaissance at Paços, instrumental in their last few games and proving that despite his 35 years, class is permanent. If Paços are to get a result in Guimarães then he will be key.

Abdul Fatawu Issahaku (Sporting): One player who had a great international break was Sporting’s Ghanaian winger Fatawu. Playing for the senior Ghana team at just 19 years of age, he scored a Puskas award worthy goal from the half-way line this week. With Sporting facing bottom of the table Santa Clara, I wonder if Amorim will use this as an opportunity to give some minutes to the young man.

Iuri Medeiros (Braga): A left footed wizard who, on his day, can unlock any defence with a killer pass. It will be Chaves’ defence he’s trying to unlock on Sunday. He has two goals and an assist in his last 3 games. You sense he’s in a period of good form, and when he’s on it, he is a joy to watch.

Yusupha N’Jie (Boavista): The Gambian striker has 10 goals this season, putting him just outside the league’s top 5 goalscorers. Up against a struggling Marítimo side he will sense another opportunity to add to that tally. 

By Barney & Albert Carter-Phillips

Full weekend schedule - Jornada 26

Friday 31/03

Estoril v Gil Vicente (8.15 pm)

 

Saturday 01/04

Vizela v Casa Pia (15.30 pm)

Vitória v Paços de Ferreira (6.00 pm)

Sporting v Santa Clara (8.30 pm)

 

Sunday 02/04

Chaves v Braga (3.30 pm)

Marítimo v Boavista (3.30 pm)

Rio Ave v Benfica (6.00 pm)

Porto v Portimonense (8.30 pm)

 

Monday 03/04

Famalicão v Arouca (8.15 pm)