Preview: Vitoria de Guimaraes vs. Vizela - prediction, team news, lineups

Vitoria de Guimaraes continue their search for a first league win of the season on Sunday, when they welcome Vizela to the Estadio Dom Afonso Henriques.

Os Vimaranenses have collected just a single point from their first two Primeira Liga outings, while their opponents won their second game following promotion from the second tier last season.

Match preview

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Vitoria de Guimaraes had a strong start to last season, establishing themselves in the top six of the Primeira Liga table before a poor run after the turn of the year saw them eventually fall to an underwhelming seventh-placed finish, as they won just three of the final 18 league outings.

That run triggered the dismissal of Joao Henriques, and after Bino and Moreno guided them through the remainder of the campaign, the club swooped in the summer for Pepa, who took Pacos de Ferreira to an impressive fifth-placed finish last year.

His start did not go to plan though, as they were defeated 1-0 at home to Portimonense on the opening day with Beto hitting the only goal of the game in the final five minutes.

The Guimaraes outfit had another disappointing result last time too, as they failed to break the deadlock against newly-promoted Estoril Praia, with the match finishing goalless.

Having failed to score in their opening two league outings against sides expected to be battling in the bottom half, while failing to score, Pepa will be desperate to see his side improve quickly, starting with what would be their first top-flight win of the campaign on Sunday.

That will be no simple task though, as they take on a Vizela side who come in on a high following promotion last season and a recent 2-1 win over Tondela.

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Sunday's visitors were hovering around mid-table in the first half of last season, but an inspired run of form at the back end saw them sneak into second spot and earn automatic promotion.

They faced a particularly tough test in the opening game of the season, making the trip to the Portuguese capital to take on defending champions Sporting Lisbon, and a Pedro Goncalves brace and a Paulinho goal saw the hosts come away with a comfortable 3-0 win.

While by no means an embarrassing outcome, Vizela will have been keen to bounce back, and they made an instant recovery last time out, picking up an impressive 2-1 win over Tondela on home turf.

Joao Pedro put the visitors ahead but Kiko equalised early in the second half, and the game looked set to end level until Guilherme Schettine hit a 98th-minute winner to see Alvaro Pacheco's side snatch all three points in their first home Primeira Liga outing.

They will now look to build on that with what would be another eye-catching result on Sunday in their bid to steer clear of the relegation zone when the table begins to take shape.

Team News

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Vitoria de Guimaraes will be without midfielder Alfa Semedo, who will serve a suspension after he was sent off last time out.

He joins first-choice goalkeeper Bruno Varela and striker Oscar Estupinan on the sidelines, as the pair battle through injury problems, while midfielder Joseph Amoah's fitness is also unclear.

Pepa could continue to deploy Ricardo Quaresma and Marcus Edwards either side of Bruno Duarte in a front three, although given the lack of attacking threat in the first two games, Diogo Rochinha or Ruben Lameiras could be called upon to shake the front line up.

New signing Toni Borevkovic will continue to feature alongside Jorge Fernandes at the heart of the back four, while Andre Andre and Andre Almeida offer plenty of quality in the midfield.

Vizela's only absentee should be Mohamed Aidara, who is out of action through injury.

Cassiano is expected to lead the line, although Guilherme Schettine will also be pushing for a starting spot after his last-gasp winner against Tondela.

They recently announced the signing of Ivanildo Fernandes, but the centre-back pairing of Kiki and Bruno Wilson should remain unchanged for now.

Vitoria de Guimaraes possible starting lineup:
Trmal; Sacko, Fernandes, Borevkovic, Soares; Almeida, Andre, Silva; Rochinha, Duarte, Lameiras

Vizela possible starting lineup:
Charles; Kouao, Kiki, Wilson, Ofori; Guzzo, Claudemir, Samu; Moreira, Cassiano, Kiko

We say: Vitoria de Guimaraes 2-0 Vizela

Despite their disappointing start to the season, Vitoria de Guimaraes have the much stronger squad, and we see it only being a matter of time before they click.

With a quality-packed squad and a talented manager, they should be set for a strong campaign, and we see them collecting their first three-point haul of the season when they play on home turf on Sunday.