Matchday 14 of the 2022 Brazilian Serie A season gets underway this weekend. On Saturday, in-form Athletico-PR welcome Red Bull Bragantino to Arena da Baixada.
As one of five teams locked on 18 points, Bragantino find themselves tenth in the table – three points behind Athletico.
Meanwhile, Athletico sit third – four points behind second-place Corinthians and seven points behind first-place Palmeiras.
Athletico head into Saturday’s showdown on a seven-game unbeaten streak in Serie A, having claimed four wins and three draws since their last league loss.
When you look at the bigger picture, Athletico have avoided defeat in each of their previous ten games across all competitions – picking up seven wins and three draws in the process.
Athletico have been particularly strong on home soil of late, losing just one of their past eight home games in Serie A.
Each of Athletico’s past three league games have produced under 2.5 goals, meaning we should see a low-scoring encounter this weekend.
As for Bragantino, they are currently enjoying a four-game unbeaten run in Serie A – with two wins and two draws coming since their last loss.
It is worth pointing out, however, that Bragantino have only managed to win two of their previous 13 clashes in all competitions.
That said, Bragantino have lost just one of their past six away games in Serie A – suggesting that they should put up a decent fight on Saturday.
Only one team – Ceara – has registered more Serie A draws than Bragantino’s six this season. That is definitely worth considering when it comes to predicting the outcome of this clash.
Head-to-head: Athletico are currently enjoying a five-match unbeaten streak against Bragantino, having notched three wins and two draws since their last loss in this fixture.
Four of the previous five meetings between Athletico and Bragantino have dished up under 2.5 goals, so we aren’t likely to see a great deal of action this time around.
Team news: Athletico will be without the injured trio of Thiago Heleno, Julimar and Marlos this weekend.
As for Bragantino, Emiliano Martinez remains sidelined due to injury. The Uruguayan midfielder hasn’t featured since December.
All the signs point towards a low-scoring encounter on Saturday, meaning we are likely to see a close-fought battle.
Forebet predicts that Athletico and Bragantino will play out a stalemate this weekend, with both sides netting under 1.5 goals.