Preview: Gremio vs. Bahia - prediction, team news, lineups

Gremio will look to kickstart a rise up the Campeonato Brasileiro Serie A table on Saturday, when they play host to Bahia.

After a poor start to the season, the hosts have started to improve under Luiz Felipe Scolari and will now look to find more consistency, while their visitors go in search of an elusive win after six league outings without a victory.

Match preview

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Gremio suffered a poor start to the domestic season, only winning one of their opening 10 league games and collecting just six points to immediately drop into the bottom three of the Brazilian top flight.

That underwhelming start triggered the dismissal of manager Tiago Nunes and the subsequent appointment of former Brazil manager Luiz Felipe Scolari, who returned for his fourth spell at the club with the aim of inspiring a climb up the table.

He has certainly had a positive impact so far, overseeing a 1-0 win over seventh-placed Fluminense in his second game, before they picked up a crucial 2-1 win over basement side Chapecoense earlier in August.

Anselmo Ramon gave their opponents an early lead, but goals from Alisson and Miguel Borja put Gremio a goal ahead in the first half, and they went on to see out a 2-1 win.

They failed to make it back-to-back wins though, losing 2-1 to Sao Paulo in the following game, before they bounced back with a 1-0 away win over Cuiaba last time out, thanks to a Borja penalty.

While they still remain in the drop zone, Scolari's men sit just four points adrift of safety, and given how tight the bottom half is, with only six points between them and 12th-placed Juventude, they could quickly see a rise up the table if they can build on the recent win on Saturday.

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They take on a Bahia side who will be desperate to break a poor run of form, having collected just one point from their last six league outings.

On the contrary to their opponents, Bahia had a relatively strong start to the campaign, winning five of their first 10 league games and collecting 17 points to establish themselves in the top six.

However, their form quickly took a dip as they suffered consecutive defeats at the hands of Sao Paulo, Flamengo, Atletico Mineiro and Sport Recife, with a 5-0 thrashing at the hands of Flamengo being a particular low point.

The Bahiaco did briefly stop the rot with a 1-1 draw away against Cuiaba, as Rodriguinho put them ahead before a Pepe goal forced them to settle for a point.

They would again fall to a defeat last time out though, as they led 1-0 against Atletico Goianiense through Gilberto before second-half goals from Ze Roberto and Joao Paulo condemned them to their eighth league defeat of the campaign.

The poor form has seen Bahia quickly slip to 13th spot, and they will now be keen to capture an elusive league victory to reverse their fortunes.

Team News

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Gremio should remain without Diego Souza, Guilherme Guedes and Walter Kannemann, as the trio continue to battle through injuries.

Meanwhile, full-backs Vanderson and Rafinha and midfielder Thiago Santos will miss out through suspension, having all collected their third yellow card of the season last time out.

However, they will be boosted by the return of defender Pedro Geromel, who served a one-game suspension in the victory over Cuiaba.

He may have to battle to return to the starting XI though, after Rodrigues and Ruan stood strong to keep a clean sheet in that away win.

Miguel Borja will lead the line, having hit two goals in his three league appearances since returning from the Copa America, while former Bayern Munich and Juventus winger Douglas Costa seems to be finally finding his feet, and will add additional quality on the right-hand side.

Bahia will remain without midfielders Juan Pablo Ramirez and Thonny Anderson through injury concerns.

However, they will welcome forward Rossi back to action, after he served a suspension last time out.

Experienced forward Gilberto should keep his place though, having hit his eighth league goal of the season in the recent defeat after coming in for the suspended Rossi.

Gremio possible starting lineup:
Chapeco; Geromel, Ruan, Rodrigues, Barbosa; Maicon, Darlan; Costa, Villasanti, Alisson; Borja

Bahia possible starting lineup:
Teixeira; Paraiba, Conti, Otavio, Capixaba; Douglas, Daniel, De Lucca, Mugni; Rodriguinho, Gilberto

We say: Gremio 2-0 Bahia

While still struggling for consistency, Gremio have certainly shown signs of improvement recently, and should put another victory on the board to begin rising up the table.

Bahia's confidence will have taken a huge hit following their poor run of league form, and we see them being outclassed by a strong Gremio squad that arguably belongs further up the division.