Cruzeiro vs Ponte Preta: Preview and Prediction

By

 Oscar Suarez

Cruzeiro vs Ponte Preta
Brasileiro Serie A
Date: Sunday, 9th October 2016,
Kick-off at 1:00 UK
Venue: Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais.

Cruzeiro have a massive task at hand with just 9 matches left in the season and they stay inside the relegation zone. They are one of the five club’s in Brazil’s top tier to have never relegated. The Raposa are currently 17th in the league and a couple of wins from here could lift them up towards the top half of the table.

Ponte Preta are currently 10th in the Brazilian Serie A, but at a 6 point gap from the 17th placed Cruzeiro. They tend to do well while playing in front of their home fans and will be definitely aiming to better their 11th placed finish last season. While their away from is a big worry after managing just 2 wins from the 14 matches so far this season.

Cruzeiro vs Ponte Preta: Head-to-Head Stats

Cruzeiro earned a 4-0 win when they visited Ponte Preta in June for the first leg league clash this season. And this put the Sunday’s host on a five match unbeaten run after having won 3 and drawn 2 during the period.

At the same time, Cruzeiro haven’t won in their last three home matches against Ponte Preta, with the latest two being draws and the later a defeat. However the overall home record from last 10 matches read 4 wins, 4 draws and 2 losses.

Cruzeiro vs Ponte Preta: Prediction

The Mano Menezes tutored Cruzeiro are in desperate hunt for all three points with an aim of getting away from the relegation zone as far as possible. They have just ended a five match win-less run in the league with a 1-0 home win over Gremio. And they are a better side at home after having taken 11 points from their last 6 matches.

While Ponte Preta have struggled away from all season. They are coming on the back of a 7 match win-less run away from home and conceded 2 of more goals in each of those fixtures. The Macaca have failed to win against Cruzeiro in the last 5 attempts. And with a leaky defense they could once again end up as the losing side.

Cruzeiro look good for a win on current home form and expect them to score at least twice here.