Cuiaba Esporte Clube v Cruzeiro

Cuiaba vs Cruzeiro Preview

Although the majority of the Brazilian top flight teams are out of action this weekend due to the South American World Cup qualifiers, Cuiaba and Cruzeiro will do battle at the Arena Pantanal on Saturday night with both sides keen to collect the all-important three points here.

Following a dismal six-match winless run in the domestic top flight which consisted of five defeats and a draw, Cuiaba finally returned to winning ways last time out with a resounding 3-0 home win against Fluminense and the hosts will undoubtedly be wanting for more of the same on Saturday night.

Cuiaba had previously slumped to losses in the Serie A to Athletico PR, Palmeiras, Bragantino, Gremio and Atletico Mineiro while picking up just one point from the possible 18 on offer during this period which came in the form of a 2-2 draw at home with America Mineiro.

Nevertheless, Cuiaba have lost just once in their last seven league matches at their Arena Pantanal and the hosts have also picked up wins against Santos, Sao Paulo, Flamengo and Fluminense within this sequence of results as well, and their last win at home also helped lift Cuiaba up into 11th place in the Serie A standings.

Cruzeiro dropped down the Brazilian top flight table to 15th place following a 1-1 draw at home with America Mineiro and recent results suggest the visitors may be hard pressed to collect all three points on the road at the Arena Pantanal as they have managed to register just one win from their last 11 matches overall.

That rare highlight came in the form of a comprehensive 3-0 win away from home at Santos but six draws and four defeats within this period underline the difficulties that Cruzeiro have had in terms of picking up wins in the domestic top flight.

Interestingly, eight out of Cruzeiro's last 11 games in Serie A have also resulted in Under 2.5 goals so the goals market looks the most appealing option for this upcoming clash between Cuiaba and Cruzeiro, especially as both teams have found league wins hard to come by in recent times.

Cuiaba v Cruzeiro Verdict

The bigger picture shows Cuiaba have collected just eight wins from their last 21 matches in Serie A while Cruzeiro have recorded just three wins from their last 19 games overall so neither side have not exactly set the world alight in the Brazilian top flight of late.

However, a lack of goals certainly seems to be the most likely outcome here on Saturday night as each of the previous three meetings between Cuiaba and Cruzeiro have resulted in low-scoring games with each result being Under 2.5 goals and this Saturday's clash may be no exception.

Therefore, our main bet will be Under 2.5 goals @ 1.53

Other side bets worth considering:

Cruzeiro win @ 3.10

Correct score: Cruzeiro 1-0 @ 11.00