Sporting Lisbon vs. Maritimo: Portuguese Primeira Liga Week 3 Preview
Sporting Lisbon will target nothing other than three points when they welcome 13th placed Maritimo to Jose Alvalade. The minnows are yet to win a single match in the 2011/12 Portuguese Primeira Liga season.
Sporting Lisbon:
Domingos Paciência’s side were finally able to pick up their first win of the season at home to Nordsjaelland after a stuttering start, which saw them draw twice in the opening fixtures.
Having faced mid-table sides like Olhanense and Beira-Mar, one would expect the Lions to be on top of the standings, given their hugely talented squad, however the reality has been surprisingly different.
The club had to rely on Russian striker, http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Marat-Izmailov-c23466, to gain a point against the lowly Olhanense, while they were lucky to have shared the spoils with Beira-Mar in an uninspiring scoreless draw.
Nonetheless, Sporting Lisbon are through to the group stages of the UEFA Europa League after their victory over Nordsjaelland and will be riding high with confidence. Although it would be foolish to underestimate their opponents, especially with their own
woeful league form.
Maritimo:
Like their opponents, Os Leões did not get off to a great start to the new campaign and have been short of the great form they had last time.
Although they managed to secure a draw against Beira-Mar at home, they were outclassed by http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/SC-Braga-c40460 at Estadio AXA on their next outing with a 2-0 defeat.
While they finished a respectable 9th last term, Pedro Martins’ team are already looking like they might struggle to preserve their top flight status this year. Now facing the daunting task of travelling to Estadio Jose Alvalade, their troubles
have worsened even further.
Team News:
Sporting Lisbon:
Despite not convincing their critics during the early encounters of the season, the Lisbon side possess arguably the most talented squad in the league. Armed with the likes of http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Stijn-Schaars-c34229 and Jeffren Suarez, they are a force to be
reckoned with if they can get their act together.
One of the reasons why the club have not been able sway results in their favour is because some their stars have fallen prey to injuries and the trend looks likely to continue as Domingos Paciência does not have a fully fit squad to choose from.
Atila Turan and Andre Carrillo are out for the match, with latest casualty http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Alberto-Rodríguez-c4344 ready to join them on the sidelines. The defender limped off during the last match with Beira-Mar and also failed to travel to Nordsjaelland during the week.
However, there is also good news on the treatment table, as http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Valeri-Bojinov-c35853 is fit for the clash and is rearing to go after narrowly missing out last time. He is expected to finally make his debut for the Sportinguistas alongside Emiliano Insua, who recently
joined the club after transferring from http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Liverpool-c39809.
Manager Domingos Paciência is probably going to go with the same side that secured qualification to the UEFA Europa League, with only minor tweaking to include Bojinov and Insua.
Maritimo:
Facing a stern test of their abilities against one of Portugal’s top sides, the Verde-Rubros are unlucky to be without main striker Baba Diawara, who is out with an ankle injury.
Coach Pedro Martins will be ruing the loss of Senegalese forward but can look forward to naming http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Hassan-c39506 in his starting eleven, as the duo have passed a late fitness test to be in contention for the match.
Another player who is likely to be on the sidelines is Joao Luiz, who will return to action soon but not on this weekend.
With Diawara out, Christian Pouga with lead the line for the visitors alongside Benachour and Hassan, who will slot into the central midfield role.
Key players:
Sporting Lisbon: Emiliano Insua
Having completed his high profile switch from Anfield, all the eyes will be on the http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Argentina-c2841 International, who would be looking to hit the ground running in his debut for Sporting.
Maritimo: Christian Pouga
The attacker has never stayed in one place for long and has consistently moved from one club to the other but will be integral to his side’s performance against the Portuguese giants, due to the absence of http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Baba-Diawara-c7137
Prediction:
Sporting Lisbon 1:0 Maritimo
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