Sao Paulo vs Atletico Paranaese Predictions

Saturday’s Brazilian Serie A action sees Sao Paulo doing battle with Atletico PR. The hosts arrive in desperate need for a win in order to stop their title dream from fading away.

Just mere weeks ago, Sao Paulo were running along nicely at the top of the table but they’ve since really felt the heat and now find themselves some 7 points off the pace after a disastrous run of 5 matches without victory. Diego Aguirre’s troops were not expected to compete for the title this season and can be pleased with their season overall, but they’ll want to at least put up a fight for top spot in the 9 games left to play.

Morale is understandably low in home ranks after recent defeats to title rivals Palmeiras and Internacional, but being on home turf should inspire some confidence, as Tricolor have been very strong there throughout the year. Indeed, Sao Paulo have lost just 1 of their 14 outings this season at the famous Estádio Cícero Pompeu de Toledo and having won 9 of said clashes, those who take to the pitch will be hopeful of claiming the 3 points they need so badly.

Meanwhile, having previously looked like being involved in a relegation scrap, Atletico PR now find themselves in a far more healthy 8th position. Nonetheless, with an important Copa Sudamericana quarter-final, first leg away at Bahia to come in midweek, focus isn’t really on league affairs at the moment and boss Tiago Nunes is expected to make plenty of changes to his team on Saturday.

Coming in off the back of consecutive 4-0 home victories, spirits are running high in visiting ranks but a return to the road will likely dispel any lingering confidence. Indeed, Atletico are only clear of relegation trouble thanks to a stunning run of 9 straight home victories, but away from home it’s an entirely different story, with 8 defeats from the last 10 and no visiting wins all season tells you everything you need to know.

Ultimately, almost every factor here points towards a Sao Paulo win. They are the side in greater need for the points, have been strong at home all season and face an Atletico PR side that is both distracted and close to useless on their travels.

As such, we’re more than happy to back the hosts with maximum confidence at what looks to be an extremely generous price. Sao Paulo aren’t in the best of form admittedly, but they’ve had some tough fixtures and this is one they simply have to win if they are to have any hope of regaining top spot. Atletico PR have also lost their last 4 games on enemy territory and we can only envisage that becoming 5, with a 1-0 home win on the cards.