Guimaraes v Arouca

Vitoria Guimaraes vs Arouca Preview

Vitoria Guimaraes extended their unbeaten sequence to five games in the Portuguese top flight last time out with a solid point gained in a 1-1 draw away from home at Sporting Braga which helped maintain the hosts' fifth place position in the Primeira Liga, while Arouca's brief mini revival was brought to a halt after suffering a heavy 3-0 defeat at home to Benfica.

Guimaraes currently occupy a comfortable looking fifth place in the Primeira Liga table with just three points separating them from Sporting Braga and the top four pack which carries the potential of claiming one of the European spots for next season, and having won three of their last five matches overall, the hosts will be in confident mood when they welcome lowly Arouca to their stádio Dom Afonso Henriques on Monday night.

Recent victories achieved against Farense, league leaders Sporting Lisbon and Rio Ave along with points picked up in draws with Boavista and Sporting Braga look set to give Guimaraes a solid foundation from which to work with ahead of this upcoming clash.

The bigger picture shows Guimaraes have been handed just two defeats out of their last 11 games overall in the domestic top flight whilst collecting six wins in the process, four of which were attained on home soil.

Arouca started the New Year in disappointing fashion as the visitors were dealt a comprehensive 3-0 loss at home to second placed Benfica which put an end to a promising four-match unbeaten run towards the end of last year.

Three wins within their preceding four games handed Arouca a lifeline in their bid to avoid a relegation battle following victories against Boavista, Gil Vicente and Estrela, the latter being a particularly impressive 4-1 win on the road, but Daniel Sousa's side face a tough task of keeping Guimaraes quiet in their own backyard on Monday night.

The bigger picture doesn't look too promising either for Arouca who have managed to capture just these three aforementioned wins from their previous 15 matches overall in the Portuguese top flight which also includes falling to eight defeats within this period as well, while results away from home have also been rather inconsistent as well.

Despite winning their last two away games on the trot, the visitors have managed to collect just three victories from their last 11 outings on the road overall and this could spell further trouble for Arouca at the Estádio Dom Afonso Henriques on Monday night.

Vitoria Guimaraes v Arouca Verdict

Arouca have won two out of the last three meetings against Vitoria Guimaraes but the tables look set to be turned in Guimaraes' favour here on Monday night as the hosts look to extend their solid run of results with a win.

Therefore, our main bet will be Vitoria Guimaraes win @ 1.90

Other side bets worth considering:

Vitoria Guimaraes win & Over 2.5 goals @ 3.20

Correct Score: Vitoria Guimaraes 2-1 @ 8.50