Sporting – Rio Ave. Forecast and announcement for the match of the championship of Portugal

On December 28, within the framework of the Portuguese Premier League, Sporting will play Rio Ave. The confrontation is scheduled to start at 22:30 Kyiv time.

Sporting

The capital club looks good this season, but is only second in the championship, 5 points behind the first Porto. The reason for such a gap is the competitor’s almost error-free game. Sporting can boast of being the most productive team in the championship, and by a solid margin. The difference in goals at home in the club is 23:3, in seven matches, in other words, they score more than three goals per game on average.

In the last round, the team beat strong Guimarães on the road with a score of 4:1. Somewhere you have to keep in mind the Champions League, where the club is still confidently in the playoff zone, occupying 14th place. At once, eight players will miss the upcoming meeting for various reasons.

Rio Ave

In the current season, Rio Ave is the leader in the number of draws, as many as 8 in 15 matches. The team is 11th in the championship, 4 points away from the danger zone. In the last round, the club played 2:2 away against Gil Vicente, the opponent equalized the score only in the 90th + 10th minute.

It is worth paying attention to the fact that Rio Ave plays well away from home this season, with only one defeat in 8 matches. Even with such schedules, it will be difficult to compete on the road with Sporting. Five players are forced to miss the upcoming match.

Personal meetings

The clubs have a long history of face-to-face confrontations, only in the last season they crossed paths four times. In the championship, Sporting won 3:1 at home and 3:0 away, and then also in the cup – 2:0 at home and 2:1 away. The last time Rio Ave won was in 2019.

Forecast

Judging by the quotations, the bookmakers have no doubts about the victory of the home team, but Rio Ave is not so simple, the team can create problems for the famous opponent. I have no doubt that Sporting will play as number one, trying to dominate, the guests do not have to fight for the initiative, it is important to build the game from the defense. I assume that the hosts will have difficulties in this meeting, I will bet on the exchange of goals at 2.2.