Atletico Mineiro will resume their Campeonato Brasileiro Serie A title charge when Ceara come to town on Saturday.
Having lost just three of their 23 league games this season, Atletico Mineiro find themselves a whopping 11 points clear at the summit of the Brazilian top flight.
Invencibilidade no Brasileirão chega a 16 jogos: https://t.co/vzCXY9bqqP⚔️ #TodoJogoÉDecisão #VamoGalo 🏴🏳 pic.twitter.com/RNYT7kr4Vk— Atlético 😷 (@Atletico) October 7, 2021
Invencibilidade no Brasileirão chega a 16 jogos: https://t.co/vzCXY9bqqP⚔️ #TodoJogoÉDecisão #VamoGalo 🏴🏳 pic.twitter.com/RNYT7kr4Vk
Meanwhile, Ceara sit thirteenth in the table – 21 points behind Atletico and only six points clear of the relegation zone.
Atletico lost three of their opening seven Serie A games this season, picking up three wins and one draw along the way.
Since then, however, they have avoided defeat in each of their previous 16 league outings – registering 12 wins and four draws in the process.
Having netted 35 goals this term, Atletico Mineiro are the joint-second highest scorers in Brazil’s top tier.
Better still, they have conceded just 15 goals in 23 league outings this season – meaning they boast the best defensive record in the division.
If Atletico can extend their unbeaten streak to 17 games this weekend, they will edge ever closer to sealing their first Serie A title since 1971.
Ceara, on the other hand, have only managed to win one of their last eight Serie A encounters – picking up four draws and three losses during that period.
That said, they do head into Saturday’s clash on a three-game unbeaten streak, having claimed a win and two draws in that time.
Having conceded just 21 goals this season, Ceara boast the third-best defensive record in the division – behind Atletico and Flamengo.
However, they have managed to net just 20 goals in 22 league outings this term. As a result, only two sides in the league have scored fewer.
Head-to-head: Atletico Mineiro have only lost one of their last five Serie A meetings with Ceara, securing two wins and two draws in the process.
Ceara have only beaten Atletico twice in their last eight attempts, while six of the past seven meetings have produced over 2.5 goals.
Team news: Brazilian veteran Hulk is Atletico’s top scorer this term, with eight goals and six assists in 22 Serie A games.
Meanwhile, former Atletico Madrid and Chelsea striker Diego Costa has netted two goals in three appearances since joining the club in August.
As for Ceara, they will be without injured forward Vitor Jacare on Saturday. Their top scorer is Rick, who has four goals in 16 Serie A outings this year.
You only have to take a quick look at the current Serie A standings to see that Atletico should claim a comfortable victory on home soil.
Forbet predicts that Atletico Mineiro will score over 1.5 goals and keep a clean sheet on their way to beating Ceara.