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Sports Mole previews Sunday’s Brasileiro clash between Santos and Palmeiras, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.
The return engagement in the Classico de Saudade takes place on Saturday as Santos welcome Palmeiras to Vila Belmeiro on matchday 33 of the Brasileiro Serie A campaign.
Last weekend, Alvinegro fell into the relegation zone with a 3-2 defeat at Flamengo, and Verdao held onto the top spot despite a 2-1 defeat versus Mirassol.
Match previewDropping points in five consecutive league fixtures has put Santos in danger of being relegated into Serie B, with this team currently two points below that line.
The good news is that they have a game in hand on Vitoria, who are just above them and clear of relegation, but that means nothing unless they start winning games.
Juan Pablo Vojvoda has only claimed two victories since taking charge of this club in August, with his players more often than not leaving it too late.
Under the former Fortaleza boss, this group have only scored a combined three goals in the opening 45 minutes domestically, with their two strikes against Flamengo coming in the 89th and 91st minute respectively.
Five of their eight victories so far this season have come on their home field, and four of their remaining six contests in Serie A will take place at Vila Belmiro.
Peixe have a 100% record in the top-flight this year at home when netting the opening goal, posting three clean sheets on those five occasions.
With six matches remaining, Palmeiras are still in the pole position to claim a 13th Serie A crown, but the margin for error is razor-thin at the moment.
Abel Ferreira’s men have one more win than Flamengo, and they will probably need to ensure that advantage remains or that they can go above them on points because the side from Rio boast a vastly superior goal difference than they do.
Another defeat this weekend would equal the longest losing run of the league season for Palmeiras (two games) and possibly drop them out of first place.
In 2025, this team are undefeated away from home in this competition when scoring first, dropping points in only one instance (a 1-1 draw at Corinthians).
They have not dropped a single away point all year in Serie A when leading after 45 minutes and have grabbed six points on the road when trailing at the half.
Alviverde have won four of their previous five meetings with Santos across all competitions and are unbeaten in four successive away dates against them in the top-flight, collecting three clean sheets over that stretch.
Santos Brasileiro form:
Palmeiras Brasileiro form:
Palmeiras form (all competitions):
Team News
Because of knee inflammation Mayke will likely be on the Santos sidelines this weekend, while Victor Hugo is questionable as he is dealing with a hamstring strain and Brazil’s record goalscorer Neymar is back, returning from a 48-day absence with a muscular injury against Flamengo.
Gabriel Morais Silva Bontempo and Lautaro Diaz netted in the latter stages of their previous match a week ago, though it was once again far too little and far too late.
On the Palmeiras side, a sore finger could keep Weverton out of this encounter, Lucas Evangelista is doubtful with a hamstring issue, Paulinho has a shin injury and Figueiredo is out due to a cruciate ligament problem.
Vitor Roque briefly put his team level against Mirassol, scoring his team-leading 16th of the campaign, which is one fewer than Giorgian De Arrascaeta and Kaio Jorge for the most in the league this season.
Santos possible starting lineup:
Brazao; Vinicius, Basso, Ze Ivaldo, Escobar; Schmidt, Arao; Guilherme, Ze Rafael, Barreal; Neymar
Palmeiras possible starting lineup:
Miguel; Khellven, Murilo, Gomez, Piquerez; Allan, Pereira, Moreno, Veiga; Sosa, Roque
We say: Santos 1-1 PalmeirasThese are two desperate teams playing for very different things, but both equally valuable, and the fear of coming away with nothing may lead to an eventual standstill.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
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