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Sporting sign-off for the year with a Portuguese Primeira Liga fixture against sixth-placed Portimonense at Estádio José Alvalade on Wednesday.
The hosts are just one of two unbeaten teams in the Portuguese top-flight and are on a 10-game winning streak in the league. They recorded a 3-0 win in their trip to Gil Vicente last week, with all three goals scored in the second half.
Portimonense are sixth in the league standings but there's a 17-point gap between them and the hosts. They were held to a 1-1 draw by Arouca in their previous league outing and emerged victorious in midweek's Taca de Portugal round of 16 fixture against Famalicao. They beat them 4-2 on penalties.
Sporting vs Portimonense Head-to-Head
This will just be the 13th meeting between the two across all competitions. All 12 of the encounters in this fixture have produced decisive results with 10 games going the hosts' way and Portimonense recording two wins. Their last win came in 2018.
They last squared off in league action in February at Wednesday's venue. Leões secured a 2-0 win thanks to first-half goals from Zouhair Feddal and Nuno Santos.
Sporting form guide (all competitions): W-W-W-W-L
Portimonense form guide (all competitions): W-D-W-L-W
Sporting vs Portimonense Team News
Sporting
Jovane Cabral remains sidelined with a knee injury and is expected back into the fold in January. Here are the rest of the absentees for the hosts:
- Zou Feddal - Muscle injury
- Pedro Porro - Undisclosed
- Manuel Ugarte - COVID-19
Luis Neto is suspended after a direct red card in the previous league outing against Gil Vicente, while Bruno Tabata is also suspended for the game.
Injured: Jovane Cabral, Zouhair Feddal, Pedro Porro
Doubtful: None
Suspended: Bruno Tabata, Luis Neto
Unavailable: Manuel Ugarte
Portimonense
Achraf Lazaar is the only injury concern for the visiting side who have a clean bill of health at the moment.
Injured: Achraf Lazaar
Doubtful: None
Suspended: None
Sporting vs Portimonense Predicted XI
Sporting CP Predicted XI (3-4-2-1): Antonio Adan; Sebastián Coates, Goncalo Inacio, Matheus Reis; Nuno Santos, Daniel Braganca, Gonçalo Esteves, Matheus Nunes; Pedro Goncalves, Pablo Sarabia; Paulinho
Portimonense Predicted XI (4-3-3): Samuel; Fali Cande, Lucas, Pedrao, Fahd Moufi; Carlinhos, Lucas Fernandes, Ewerton; Fabrício, Willinton Aponza, Ivan Angulo
Sporting vs Portimonense Prediction
Sporting's incredible form and defensive record makes them strong favorites against the visitors. Portimonense have the worst attacking record of any time in the top 10 and are expected to struggle against the in-form hosts.
Prediction: Sporting 2-0 Portimonense.
