Athletico-PR vs Botafogo Prediction: Expecting a High Scoring Matchup

In the upcoming fixture of Copa do Brasil, Round of 16, Leg 1, Athletico Paranaense will be up against Botafogo at the Estádio Joaquim Américo Guimarães in Curitiba. To the surprise of many, both sides for tomorrow’s fixture are standing in the top five standings of Serie A. Hence, we could expect a competitive matchup between the two. Athletico-PR stands 5th with 4 wins and 12 points, and Botafogo leads the points table with 5 wins and 15 points from 6 matches played. The two sides last played in November 2022, and Athletico-PR won (3-0) at home. Continue reading to find out more about the upcoming matchup between the two. 

With four back-to-back wins under the belt, Athletico Paranaense will be looking forward to upsetting Botafogo. In the last outing against Coritiba, Pablo, Wilian, and Canobbio scored goals, giving their team an important home win. Athletico Paranaense has scored 9 goals in the last five matches played, averaging 1.80 goals per game. In comparison to the scoring average, the hosts have conceded 6 goals, averaging 1.20 goals per game. Hence, the scoring advantage will be the key for Athletico-PR tomorrow. In the last two home fixtures, Athletico Paranaense has scored 5 goals and conceded 3. With the likes of Terans, Roque, and Cruz in the lineup, Athletico-PR will be looking to unsettle the visitors and win by a comprehensive margin. 

Botafogo might have just have felt overconfident against Goias, resulting in a defeat (2-1). In the last outing against Goias, Botafogo missed the trick and had just 2 shots on target. Now shifting the attention to Copa do Brasil’s fixture against Athletico-PR, Botafogo will be looking forward to playing positively. With three wins, a defeat, and a draw in the last five matches played, Botafogo is likely to make some reinforcements to their team against Athletico-PR. Talking about the overall goal scoring, Botafogo has scored 9 goals in the last five matches, averaging 1.80 goals per game. About the conceding average, it has conceded just 4 goals, averaging 0.80 goals per game. Hence, in terms of scoring and defending, Botafogo is quite better on paper and statistically compared to Athletico Paranaense.

With Athletico Paranaense winning two of the last three meetings between the two and having a better winning record in comparison to Botafogo, I am backing the home side for winning at home. As both teams have a robust scoring average, I am predicting both teams to score positively and the match total to be over 2.5 goals. The final result could also be a draw (2-2) if either of the two teams allow easy scoring.

• Athletico-PR to Win for 2.00
• Goals Over 2.5 for 2.25
• Both Teams to Score - Yes for 1.98