One of the early frontrunners in the Brasileiro Serie B returns to action on Sunday, hoping to pile more pressure on one of the division’s struggling sides.
With eight matches in the books, America Mineiro sit fifth in the table – two points shy of leaders Goias – while Ponte Preta find themselves two points outside the relegation zone.
Can the hosts extend their impressive start to the campaign? Or will the visitors spoil the party in Belo Horizonte? Read on to find out what our predictive analytics model forecasts.
A tarde desta quinta-feira (6) foi de reapresentação para o elenco americano! Dado o inicio na preparação para enfrentar a Ponte Preta! Domingo é dia de Coelhão no Indepa! 🐰👊🏿📸 Mourão Panda / América #PraCimaDelesCoelho #AméricaDoBrasil pic.twitter.com/O4H9OUdi6y— América FC (@AmericaFC1912) June 6, 2024
A tarde desta quinta-feira (6) foi de reapresentação para o elenco americano! Dado o inicio na preparação para enfrentar a Ponte Preta! Domingo é dia de Coelhão no Indepa! 🐰👊🏿📸 Mourão Panda / América #PraCimaDelesCoelho #AméricaDoBrasil pic.twitter.com/O4H9OUdi6y
America Mineiro suffered their first defeat of the Serie B campaign last time out, losing 2-0 against Paysandu, who picked up their first win of the season.
Still, America MG remain in a strong position thanks to an impressive start, having registered four wins and three draws before falling to Paysandu.
It is also worth noting that only three teams have scored more goals than America Mineiro’s 12, meaning they average 1.5 goals per game this term.
Having won three of their four home league games this season – scoring seven goals in the process – America MG look set to enjoy more success this weekend.
As for Ponte Preta, they picked up only their second win of the campaign last time out, claiming a 4-2 victory over CRB thanks to a couple of late goals.
It would not be unfair to say that Ponte Preta have started the season in inconsistent form, recording two wins, three draws and three losses.
On top of that, Ponte Preta have conceded 11 goals in eight matches, meaning they possess the fourth-worst defensive record in the division.
To make matters worse for the visitors, they have failed to taste victory on their travels this season, drawing two and losing two of their four away league outings.
Head-to-head: America Mineiro have avoided defeat in each of their last seven Serie B meetings with Ponte Preta, keeping six clean sheets in the process.
Given that each of the past five encounters have produced under 2.5 goals, Sunday’s clash will likely be a relatively low-scoring affair
Team news: America Mineiro’s Renato Marques and Fabinho have each bagged three goals and one assist in eight league appearances this season.
On the flip side, Ponte Preta’s Gabriel Novaes has registered two goals and one assist, while Elvis has contributed one goal and two assists so far.
When you couple America MG’s strong start to the season with their positive record against Ponte Preta, all the signs point towards a home win.
Forebet predicts that America Mineiro will score over 1.5 goals and keep a clean sheet on their way to defeating Ponte Preta.