Palmeiras vs Ponte Preta Predictions & Betting Tips, Match Previews

Palmeiras have responded well to the news that star striker Gabriel Jesus has left for Manchester City. They’d previously struggled in games when the teenager didn’t play and the consensus seemed to be that their title bid was on the brink of crumbling when they lost back-to-back games against Atletico Mineiro and Botafogo. However they come into this match following successive victories over Vitoria and Atletico PR, the latter of which was particularly impressive given it was away from home against a team enjoying a fine season.

With a few of the other teams at the top tripping up of late, Palmeiras have opened up a 3 point advantage at the top on 2nd place Santaos and they can really ramp up the pressure on their rivals if they can pick up maximum points here. Ponte Preta could move to within 6 points of Palmeiras if they win this though so they could yet get themselves certainly into the frame for a Libertadores place which would be a fantastic achievement.

Ponte Preta don’t travel that well though and have lost 5 of their last 7 away games including all of the last 3 in Serie A. They were all fairly convincing defeats too as they shipped 3 goals against Santos, Coritiba and Fluminense. They did win on their last Serie A visit here but this is a much stronger Palmeiras side now and one that is starting to believe they could end their wait for a league title this season.

Palmeiras have won 8 of their 10 home league games this term with fellow title-hopefuls Santos and Atletico Mineiro the only sides to stop them winning at Allianz Parque. It’s hard to see Ponte Preta doing likewise given their tendency to collapse on the road and backing Palmeiras -1.0 Asian Handicap at 1.950 looks to offer the best value.