Gil Vicente vs Rio Ave prediction 09.08.2026 | Liga Portugal

Gil Vicente begin the new Liga Portugal campaign after a solid pre-season saw them remain unbeaten in three warm-up fixtures. 

Luis Pinto’s men picked up draws against Felgueiras and Moreirenese and a surprise 1:0 win against Portuguese champions Porto.

While the hosts enjoyed a strong campaign, eventually finishing sixth in the division, Gil Vicente have struggled to find much winning form this year.

Pinto’s side have won just three of 15 games played since mid-February.

Defensive issues led to several high-scoring contests towards the end of the season. Gil Vicente leaked 22 goals in their last 14 competitive fixtures, keeping only one clean sheet in that period. 

As a consequence of those rearguard deficiencies, all but three of their last 17 league games finished with over 2.5 goals scored.

Gil Vicente have added several new faces this summer, with Ricardo Esgaio, Andreas Lausen, Martin Fernandez and Walace Franca all joining the squad ahead of the new Liga Portugal campaign.

Head coach Pinto has no reported injury issues this weekend.

Rio Ave make the trip to Barcelos looking to build on a strong pre-season campaign. Sotiris Sylaidopoulos’s side won four of five summer friendlies, including a 3:1 win against Tondela last weekend. 

High-scoring outcomes have been a theme of their pre-season results, with all five games seeing a minimum of three goals scored. Rio Ave also picked up a 5:2 win against Nottingham Forest U21 and a 2:2 draw against Al Ahli.

The visitors endured a mixed run of form at the end of last season, failing to win any of their last five league fixtures. Rio Ave finished 12th in Liga Portugal, collecting 36 points from 34 matches.

Defensive issues were a major concern, with Rio Ave conceding 57 goals across the season. Five of their last nine games of the season also saw at least three goals scored.