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NederlandFresh off the back of an impressive victory at Vitoria de Guimaraes, Arouca welcome Moreirense to the Estadio Municipal de Arouca in round 24 of the Primeira Liga on Saturday.
Os verdes e branco, who are currently on a two-game losing streak, will be aiming to complete a league double over the hosts after claiming a 2-1 victory in September's reverse fixture.
Match preview
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Arouca returned to winning ways in style in the Primeira Liga when they saw off Vitoria de Guimaraes 3-1 at the Dom Afonso Henriques last Saturday.
In an action-packed first half, after Oscar Estupinan cancelled out Joao Basso's 13th-minute opener, Antony Alves restored the visitor's lead in the 35th minute before Andre Bukia made sure of the result six minutes later.
Prior to that, Armando Evangelista's men were on a three-game winless run, playing out a goalless draw with Famalicao on January 31 before falling to successive defeats at the hands of Porto and Maritimo in their subsequent outings.
Last weekend's result saw Arouca rise one point above Tondela in the final relegation spot as they now occupy 15th place in the Primeira Liga standings with 21 points from 23 games.
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Meanwhile, Moreirense failed to move on from their humbling 5-0 loss against Famalicao as they fell to a slender 1-0 defeat against title-chasing Porto at the Parque de Jogos Comendador Joaquim de Almeida Freitas.
In a game which saw both sides finish with 10 men, Brazilian forward Evanilson scored the only goal of the game in the 40th minute but it was enough to condemn Ricardo Sa Pinto's side to their 12th defeat of the season.
Moreirense have now lost four of their last five games — failing to score in each of those four games and conceding 10 goals — while they have managed just one win from their last seven outings.
With 19 points from 23 games, Os verdes e branco are currently bottom but one in the league standings, four points above last-place Belenenses and two off Saturday's hosts in safety.
Having secured an impressive seventh-placed finish last term, Moreirense's poor performance has been owing to their struggles on the road where they boast the league's fourth-worst record with seven points from 12 games, while scoring just seven goals in that time.
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Team News
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While David Simao returned from his injury lay-off, Arouca will still have to make do with the absence of Fernando Augusto and Jose Manuel Velazquez, who are out through shoulder and knee injuries respectively.
They are joined on the club's injury table by Moses Yaw as the 33-year-old midfielder remains sidelined after picking up a severe muscle problem last April.
Oday Dabbagh, who has four goals and one assist under his belt this season, is also out of contention for Arouca after sustaining an injury against Famalicao on January 31.
Following his side's impressive attacking display last weekend, Evangelista could name an unchanged attacking unit, meaning we could see Alves, Bukia and Andre Silva up top.
Meanwhile, Moreirense will take to the pitch without the services of Walterson Silva, who picked up an injury in the 5-0 loss against Famalicao two weeks ago.
Guinea-Bissau international Sori Mane is set to sit out his fourth consecutive game after coming off injured against Braga back in January, while former Everton midfielder Kevin Mirallas is also ruled out for Os verdes e branco through a muscle problem.
Veteran defender Steven Vitoria will also play no part in Saturday's game after the 35-year-old Canadian received his marching orders against Porto last weekend.
Arouca possible starting lineup:
Braga; Thales, Basso, Glovic, Quaresma; Eboue, Moreira, Simao; Bukia, Alves, A Silva
Moreirense possible starting lineup:
Pasinato; Rosic, Santos, Jorge; Jefferson, Camara, Silva, Amador; Santos, Luis, Martins
We say: Arouca 1-1 Moreirense
On the back of an impressive win over Vitoria de Guimaraes, Arouca will head into Saturday's with renewed confidence. However, the visitors will fancy their chances against the hosts, who have lost each of their last five games, scoring just once in that time. We predict the spoils will be shared in this one with both sides settling for a point apiece.
