Palmeiras v Botafogo

Palmeiras vs Botafogo Preview

Palmeiras will be eager to bounce back with a win in the Brazilian top flight on Sunday afternoon when they play host to Botafogo in what is a top of the table clash in Serie A, following defeat last time out away from home at Bahia.

The 1-0 loss away at Bahia put an end to Palmeiras' unbeaten start to this new Serie A campaign but although they were dealt this recent defeat, Palmeiras still occupy second place in the domestic top flight table and are five points adrift of the league leaders and visitors, Botafogo.

Although results away from home have been fairly solid, winning two, drawing three and losing just once in their opening six games on the road, Palmeiras have really come into their own on home soil at their Allianz Parque where they still remain unbeaten and winning four of their five matches played to date.

Victories against Cuiaba, Corinthians, most impressive of all a 4-1 win against Gremio and Coritiba should give Palmeiras plenty of confidence as they take on the Serie A leaders on Sunday.

Botafogo possess a useful five-point cushion at the top of the Serie A table prior to this weekend's action in the Brazilian top flight and the visitors head into this important clash at the top of the table on the back of two wins on the trot gained over Fortaleza and Cuiaba in 2-0 and 1-0 victories respectively.

The league leaders have made an impressive start to this new campaign as they have picked up nine wins in their opening 11 games and they also possess a 100% winning record on home soil at their Estádio Nilton Santos, but Botafogo have tasted defeat a couple of times on the road already in this campaign.

Despite collecting wins on their travels at Bahia, Flamengo and Cuiaba, Botafogo have also been handed defeats on the road at Goias and Athletico PR and this perhaps shows that the visitors have a possible soft underbelly when travelling in the domestic top flight and could be susceptible to defeat at Allianz Parque on Sunday afternoon.

Palmeiras v Botafogo Verdict

The bigger picture shows Palmeiras are unbeaten in their previous 16 home games in Serie A and the hosts have also captured no fewer than 13 victories during this period so they look to stand a more than decent chance of gaining a positive result here this Sunday.

In addition, Palmeiras have won the last two meetings on the trot against Botafogo, picking up a 3-1 win away from home and a resounding 4-0 thumping of their opponents at home in their last meeting at Allianz Parque, whilst the bigger picture shows Palmeiras have lost just one of their previous 11 encounters overall with Botafogo.

Therefore, our main bet will be Palmeiras win @ 1.57

Other side bets worth considering:

Palmeiras win & Under 2.5 goals @ 3.60

Correct score: Palmeiras 2-0 @ 7.00