The 2021/22 Portuguese Primeira Liga season begins this weekend and the final fixture to be played is on the 9th of August between Gil Vicente and Boavista.
The match will be played at the Estádio Cidade de Barcelos, with the visitors hoping to improve on their disappointing 13th place finish last season, which saw them just 2 points above the relegation playoff position.
Gil Vicente finished last season in 11th place on 39 points but ended the season with a poor run of results. They won only 2 of their last 7 league fixtures and were defeated 2-1 at home by Boavista in the final match of the campaign.
In fact, home form was extremely disappointing and Gil Vicente have failed to win any of their last 5 home league games, losing 3 of them.
The League Cup started in Portugal at the end of July but Gil Vicente are already out of the competition having lost via a penalty shootout at Paços Ferreira following a 1-1 draw.
Trends show Gil Vicente have kept only one clean sheet in their last 5 home Primeira Liga matches. They have also failed to score more than a single goal themselves in any of those 5 games, failing to find the back of the net twice, meaning they have scored only 3 goals in their last 5 home league fixtures.
Boavista have had no problem progressing to the third round of the League Cup. They started on the 25th of July with a 1-0 victory at Marítimo before beating Portimonense at home thanks to two goals in either half by Tiago Morais.
Boavista proved difficult to beat towards the end of last season and they were undefeated in 4 of their final 5 Primeira Liga matches. The defeat came away from home at the hands of the eventual champions, Sporting Lisbon and was a narrow 1-0 loss.
Trends show Boavista have won only 3 of their last 17 away Primeira matches but they have a good recent record against Gil Vicente and are unbeaten in all of their last 6 away matches against the team from Barcelos. Boavista have scored 2 or more goals in 3 of their last 5 away league games.
Looking ahead to the team news and Gil Vicente do not have any major injuries or suspensions. They have several Brazilian players in their squad, with Lucas Cunha, Vitor Carvalho, Samuel Lino, and Murilo all with a good chance of starting this match.
Boavista are also free of any injury problems ahead of this game. Young Portuguese striker, Tiago Morais, has started the season well in the League Cup and will be hoping for a chance to impress in the league. Luís Santos, Jeriel De Santis, and Yusupha Njie are also competing for places in attack.
Boavista have a good recent record when playing against Gil Vicente and will be confident of starting the season with maximum points. We except to see the away team come away with the win and keep a clean sheet in the process.