Porto vs Victoria Guimaraes Prediction: Hosts can claim final spot with victory

The second semi-final of the Taca de Portugal concludes on Wednesday evening and Porto hold a slender advantage over Victoria Guimaraes after their 1-0 victory in the first leg at the Estadio D. Afonso Henriques on March 3.

Read on for our Porto vs Victoria Guimaraes prediction and all the latest team news and match odds for this 20:15 kick-off at the Estadio do Dragao.

Pepe Aquino's second-half goal was enough to seal victory in the first leg at the beginning of the month, and the hosts will feel confident that they can get the job done and reach the final for the third consecutive year after beating Braga and Tondela in 2022 and 2023, respectively.

However, this will be the third time the two sides have met this month, the other meeting being the visitors' 2-1 league victory at the Estadio Do Dragao, so expect Guimaraes to cause issues in the battle to face Sporting in next month's final.

Team News

Sergio Conceicao's Porto side will be without captain Pepe and forward Evanilson through suspension, while injuries mean that Zaidu Sanusi and Ivan Marcano will watch from the sidelines.

Fellow defender Fabio Cardoso's fitness will be assessed closer to kick-off after he missed Saturday's draw against Famalicao with a knock.

Iranian striker Mehdi Taremi - who has registered his lowest-scoring Primeira Liga season with four goals - is expected to lead the line, while Otavio and Ze Pedro could start at the back.

Telmo Arcanjo remains Guimaraes' only confirmed long-term absentee, but a pair of players will have their fitness checked to see their availability.

Mikel Villanueva returned to the bench at the weekend after a prolonged spell away, while Ricardo Mangas has not featured since picking up a knock in their league meeting with Porto earlier this month and both could feature if passed fit.

Match Odds

Porto, as expected, are the favourites to seal their place in the Taca de Portugal final with victory at 1/3 inside 90 minutes, giving them an implied win probability of 75%, while the visitors - whose sole success in this competition came in 2013 - are 13/2, or a 13.3% chance, to claim the win.

The draw provides odds of 10/3 and over 2.5 goals can be backed at 4/6.

Porto to win and both teams to score (90 mins) @ 21/10

Porto's league hopes are all but over after leaders Sporting opened up a 15-point gap over the third-placed Dragoes, meaning a 20th cup success looks to be the hosts' only realistic chance of silverware this season.

Their ability to perform when it matters in this competition puts them in good stead to claim victory but, with their only home defeat across their last 15 at the Estadio do Dragao coming against Guimaraes, the visitors should be able to scare Conceicao's side with a goal of their own.

Porto to score in both halves @ 11/10

The hosts scored in both halves in Saturday's 2-2 draw with Famalicao and a repeat could be in store on Wednesday.

With the need to make home advantage count, Porto will know an early goal will settle the nerves and, with Guimaraes chasing the game, gaps could be there to exploit in the dying embers.

Check out the rest of our Football Betting Tips here.