Vitoria Guimaraes vs Santa Clara Predictions

• Under 2.5 goals have been scored in 5 of the last 6 meetings between these two clubs.
• Under 2.5 goals have been scored in 3 of Guimaraes and 3 of Santa Clara’s last 6 matches.
• Guimaraes have won all of their previous home games against Santa Clara.
• 4 of Guimaraes’ 6 home wins against Santa Clara have been accompanied by clean sheets and 3 of those games have produced under 2.5 goals.

Vitoria Guimaraes have kept three clean sheets in their last six matches

Vitoria Guimaraes were held to a goalless draw away at Maritimo last time out while Santa Clara suffered a 1-0 defeat at home to Rio Ave which saw the gap between Saturday’s pair increase to 5pts. Both teams have been involved in a number of low-scoring matches this season, especially in recent weeks, and five of the last six encounters between the two clubs have produced under 2.5 goals. Three of Guimaraes’ and three of Santa Clara’s last six matches in all competitions have seen under 2.5 goals scored, so you can see why we are expecting another tight and tense affair on Saturday.

The hosts have won four of their eight home games in the league this season while Santa Clara have picked up just two wins from their seven away games but have looked more solid on the road than they have in their own backyard which is why we believe Saturday’s game will be close throughout.

Guimaraes average 1.75 points per home game which is above the league average of 1.53, while Santa Clara average 1.29 points per away game and have picked up more points on the road than they have at home so far this season. The hosts score an average of 1.88 goals per home game and only concede 0.75 goals and Santa Clara only score an average of 0.71 goals per away game and concede an average of 1.00 goals, which is why we have backed a 1-0 final scoreline in favour of Vitoria Guimaraes.

Santa Clara have lost four of their last five games in all competitions

Santa Clara’s away games produced an average of 1.71 total goals, adding further weight to our prediction of under 2.5 goals being scored in Saturday’s clash. In fact, over 2.5 goals have only been scored in 25% of Guimaraes’ home games and in 14% of Santa Clara’s away games, which suggests that under 2.5 goals are more likely to be scored this weekend.

Both teams have scored in 38% of Guimaraes’ home games and 29% of Santa Clara’s away games, which points towards just one side scoring, if any at all, on Saturday. The hosts have netted 15 goals in their own backyard this season while Santa Clara have only scored 5 goals on the road, which is one of the main reasons we have backed Guimaraes to claim all three points on Saturday. Vitoria Guimaraes have kept clean sheets in 38% of their home games and have gone on to win all of those games.

We’re confident that under 2.5 goals will be produced in Saturday’s match and we have predicted a final scoreline of 1-0 in favour of Vitoria Guimaraes. The hosts head into this match as the form favourites with three wins and two draws from their last six matches, with their only defeat coming at the hands of the league leaders Benfica. Santa Clara have lost four of their last five matches and despite some decent performances on the road, we expect Vitoria Guimaraes to just do enough to win Saturday’s clash.