Botafogo take on the visitors Coritiba in the round 17 match of Brazilian Serie A. The match will be played on Sunday, July 30th at Estadio Olimpico Nilton Santos (Rio de Janeiro).
At the end of the previous season, Botafogo finished only in the 11th place in the championship. In the current season, this team surprisingly took the lead right from the start and has not relinquished it to anyone up to this day. They have lost points only in three out of 16 matches in the Serie A, and at the moment, they are 11 points ahead of their closest competitor in the race for the gold medals and 8 points ahead in terms of points lost. In the last league round, Botafogo managed to secure a draw away against Santos (2-2) after playing a match in the South American Cup. Before that, they had achieved four consecutive victories in the championship against Bragantino (2-0), Gremio (2-0), Vasco da Gama (2-0), and Palmeiras (1-0).
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Coritiba have recently shown significant improvement and gained 10 points in the last four matches, which is twice as much as in the previous 12 championship matches. This is certainly a positive development, but one should not overestimate this team. Yes, the change of head coach revitalized the squad, but now they have to visit the strongest team in the country. In the Serie A table, Coritiba is still in the relegation zone, having lost half of their matches in the current season. In eight away matches in the league, they suffered five defeats. Among their recent failures on away grounds, it is worth noting losses against Palmeiras (1-3) and Gremio (1-5).
The championship leader, with a significant lead over its closest competitors, hosts a team placed third from the bottom of the table. For me, the favorite is obvious, even despite Coritiba's noticeable improvement in July. The difference in class between them and the home team Botafogo is too significant, and it is unlikely that the guests will pass this test against Botafogo's footballers and manage to achieve at least a draw in Rio. The head-to-head statistics also favor the favorite, who has been stronger than this opponent in four out of the last five meetings, including the two most recent encounters in Rio: 2-0 and 2-0. My prediction is a Home Win based on the class, despite my respect for the guests, who are no longer easy opponents.
Prediction for the match: Botafogo to win.
