Fresh off the back of ending their three-game winless run, Santa Clara square off against Arouca at the Estadio Municipal de Arouca in round 30 of the Primeira Liga on Friday.

The hosts, meanwhile, will head into the game seeking to get one over Os Acoreanos and move clear of the relegation places as they are currently 15th in the Primeira Liga standings.

Match preview

Arouca failed to push clear of the relegation places as they were sent crashing back down to earth last Saturday when they fell to a slender 1-0 defeat at Boavista.

In a cagey affair at the Estadio do Bessa, Kenji Gorre's 12th-minute strike was enough to separate the sides as Os Axadrezados held on for a second consecutive league victory for just the second time this season.

Prior to that, Armando Evangelista's men ended their four-game winless run as they saw off Gil Vicente 2-1 on April 2, when Andre Silva netted twice in a four-minute spell before Lucas Cunha pulled one back in the 92nd minute.

With 26 points from 29 games, Arouca are currently 15th in the Primeira Liga standings, one point above Tondela in the relegation playoff spot and three above 17th-placed Moreirense.

With five games left to play before the end of the season, the Arouquenses need to turn their fortunes around sooner rather than later, but first up is an opposing side who they have failed to defeat in each of their last three attempts since 2018.

Santa Clara, meanwhile, made light work of Estoril Praia when the sides met last Sunday as they claimed a comfortable 2-0 victory at the Estadio de Sao Miguel.

Portuguese midfielder Ricardinho and FC Tokyo loanee Kyosuke Tagawa scored in either half to hand the hosts all three points and condemn the Canarinhos to a third defeat on the spin.

Prior to that, Mario Silva's side were on a three-game winless run, picking up two points from the possible nine while conceding three goals and failing to find the target in that time.

With 34 points from 29 games, Santa Clara are currently ninth in the league standings, level on points with eighth-place Estoril Praia, but could rise as high as seventh place with maximum points on Friday.

However, Os Acoreanos have struggled to get going away from home, where they are currently winless in six straight games across all competitions, while managing just one victory in 12 outings since last October.

Team News

Arouca will be without the services of goalkeeper Fernando Augusto, defender Jose Manuel Velazquez and midfielder Moses Yaw, who have all been sidelined through injuries.

Evangelista will also be unable to call upon the services of 24-year-old midfielder Eboue Kouassi after the Ivory Coast international came off injured in February's game against Moreirense.

He is joined on the Arouquenses injury table by Portuguese midfielder Pedro Moreira, who is set to sit out his third straight game after picking up an injury against Tondela on March 19.

Meanwhile, Santa Clara remain without the services of 29-year-old midfielder Costinha, who has been out of action since last August through an Achilles tendon injury.

Ricardinho bagged a goal and an assist against Estoril Praia last time out and the 23-year-old could be tasked with spearheading the attack once again.

Arouca possible starting lineup:
Braga; Esgaio, Basso, Galovic; Thales, L Silva, Moreira, Pite; Dabbagh, Nunes, A Silva

Santa Clara possible starting lineup:
Pereira; Sagna, Villanueva, Boateng, Mansur; Carvalho, Nene; Costa, Tagawa, Allano; Ricardinho

We say: Arouca 0-1 Santa Clara

Buoyed by last weekend's win over Estoril Praia, Santa Clara will head into Friday's game with renewed confidence as they look to secure a top-half finish this season. They face a floundering Arouca side, who have picked up just five points from their last six games and we predict Os Acoreanos will claim all three points, albeit by the odd goal.

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