Porto won the Liga Portugal title in their previous home game and will want to go out on a high in front of their own supporters. Santa Clara managed one shot on target in their last game, at home, the Dragons to win to nil here.
| 2025/26 Primeira Liga | Porto | Santa Clara |
|---|---|---|
| Current Position | 1st | 12th |
| Wins | 27 | 9 |
| Draws | 4 | 9 |
| Losses | 2 | 15 |
| Goals Scored | 65 (1.97 pg) | 32 (0.97 pg) |
| Goals Conceded | 18 (0.55 pg) | 40 (1.21 pg) |
HTH - Dragons Dominant
Porto have a dominant 20-2 record against Santa Clara alongside two draws.
Porto Prepared to Party
Porto recovered from exiting the Europa League and Portuguese Cup to claim the Liga Portugal title. Jan Bednarek scored the winning goal in a 1-0 victory over Alverca, the title won with two games to spare.
Francesco Farioli made plenty of changes and saw his side lose 3-1 at AVS last time out. Deniz Gül equalised in the second half but they failed to take their chances, ending with 3.20-0.87 xG.
The manager spoke after the defeat: “I think today's game is a particular one because, of course, if we look at the opportunities, it was probably enough to win the game.
“But in reality, knowing that this is all football, I think we lacked a bit of aggression, especially in the opponent's area. We got there several times, with many balls crossing the line, and we couldn't finish the play as we should have.”
Santa Clara Safe
Santa Clara slipped into the relegation zone in January which saw Vasco Matos replaced by Petit. The new manager saw his side go unbeaten in nine of their last 11 games to achieve safety.
The Azores club took advantage against a weakened Braga side to win 2-1 at home before Elias Manoel’s 95th minute goal secured a 2-2 draw at Arouca.
Petit’s side beat Nacional in their last outing, a game of very few chances. Manoel came off the bench early on and wrapped up the victory with his third goal of the season.
Predicted Lineups & Team News
Porto (4-3-3) Diogo Costa; Alberto Costa, Thiago Silva, Jakub Kiwior, Francisco Moura; Tiago Silva, Pablo Rosario, Rodrigo Mora; William Gomes, Deniz Gül, Oskar Pietuszewski
Farioli could hand Tiago Silva his first start here after the 18-year-old came off the bench in Vila das Aves. Jan Bednarek was recently robbed at home and could miss out once again.
| Player | Position | Status | Reason |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nehuen Perez | Centre Back | Confirmed Out | Achilles tendon rupture |
| Dominik Prpic | Centre Back | Suspended | Rec card vs AVS |
| Luuk de Jong | Striker | Confirmed Out | Cruciate ligament injury |
| Samu Aghehowa | Striker | Confirmed Out | Knee injury |
Santa Clara (4-2-3-1) Joao Afonso; Diogo Calila, Sidney Lima, Pedro Pacheco, Paulo Victor; Jose Tavares, Andrey; Welinton Torrao, Gustavo Klismahn, Gabriel Silva; Elias Manoel
Elias Manoel has scored in back to back games off the bench and is set for his first start of the season.
| Player | Position | Status | Reason |
|---|---|---|---|
|
MT
|
Defender | Confirmed out | Knee ligament rupture |
| Pedro Ferreira | Midfielder | Doubtful | Injury |
| Gonçalo Paciência | Striker | Doubtful | Injury |