Arouca vs Marítimo – News and Probable Lineups

Arouca aims to recover from their initial loss of the season as they host Maritimo at Estadio Municipal de Arouca during the fourth matchday of the Portuguese Primeira Liga this Saturday.

With seven points garnered from the first three matches, Os Verde-Rubros have made an impressive return to the top tier, and they are eager to build upon their good start as they enter the weekend.

Match overview

Arouca faced their first setback of the 2026-27 Primeira Liga campaign last Sunday, suffering a 2-0 defeat to reigning champions Porto at Estadio do Dragao.

The visitors managed to hold their ground effectively, frustrating Porto in the opening half. However, the champions intensified their efforts in the second half, with Gabri Veiga and Borja Sainz scoring in a swift 19-minute period to maintain their perfect league record.

Arouca commenced their season with two consecutive wins, claiming a 1-0 victory over Vitoria de Guimaraes at Estadio Dom Afonso Henriques on August 8, followed by a more comprehensive 4-0 triumph against Moreirense at home eight days later.

Despite the loss on Sunday, Vasco Seabra’s players can take satisfaction from their solid opening to the campaign, being just one point shy of their best start back in the 2015-16 season, when they totaled seven points from their first three games.

Arouca now returns home, where they will hope to bounce back this weekend at the Estadio Municipal de Arouca, where they enjoy a formidable record of four wins and one draw from five league matches since their 2-1 loss to Benfica in February.

Having returned to the top tier after being relegated in the 2022-23 season, Maritimo has emerged as an early surprise, gathering seven points from their initial three fixtures for their second-best start to a season.

After clinching the 2025-26 Segunda Liga title, which ended their three-year tenure in the second division, Os Verde-Rubros began their campaign with two straight victories, defeating Casa Pia 1-0 at home in the season opener before earning a 2-1 win over Famalicao at Estadio Municipal de Famalicao on August 16.

Last Saturday, while their unbeaten run appeared threatened, Maritimo mounted an impressive second-half comeback against Academico Viseu, coming back from two goals down to secure a 2-2 draw at Estadio do Maritimo.

Andre Clovis and Soufiane Messeguem struck early in the first half to give Academico Viseu the advantage at half-time, but Paulo Henrique brought one back for the hosts in the 70th minute, followed by Adrian Butzke’s equalizer from the penalty spot in the 88th minute to share the points in the meeting of the newly-promoted clubs.

Head coach Mitchell van der Gaag, who signed a one-year deal, has made an immediate impact upon returning to the club, having started his managerial journey with Maritimo’s youth squad in 2008 before advancing to lead the senior team and guide them to European qualification in 2010.

Team News

Arouca will be without Spanish forward Ivan Puche, who has been sidelined since suffering a serious knee injury during the match against Estrela Amadora in April.

After scoring in both of the opening two fixtures, Ivan Barbero had a quiet performance against Porto last weekend, but he is expected to spearhead the attack for Arouquenses once again, accompanied by Orest Lebedenko, Jose Fontan, Javi Sanchez, and Tiago Esgaio on the other end of the pitch.

Conversely, Maritimo has kept an unchanged starting XI for their first three matches, and following the spirited effort last weekend against Academico, it is anticipated that Van der Gaag will field his back four of Igor Juliao, Rafael Fernandes, Romain Correia, and Henrique again.

Butzke found the net for the first time this season with his equalizer last Saturday, and the Spanish striker, who contributed 14 goals last term to aid Os Verde-Rubros in their promotion bid, will aim to repeat that performance.

We expect fellow Spanish forward Martin Tejon and the 26-year-old Simo Bouzaidi to join him in the front three, with Vladan Danilovic, Rodrigo Andrade, and the experienced midfielder Rafael Guzzo maintaining their positions in the center of the field.

Arouca probable starting XI:

Arruabar’s; Lebedenko, Fontan, Sanchez, Esgaio; Fukui, Van Ee; Djouahra, Lee, Trezza

Maritimo probable starting XI:

Shepherd; Juliao, Fernandes, Correia, Henrique; Danilovic, Andrade, Guzzo; Tejon, Bouzaidi, Butzke

Maritimo has made a strong start following their return to the top flight, and although they will strive to maintain their momentum this weekend, they face an Arouca side that has proven to be difficult to beat on home soil.

With only two defeats in the past 10 encounters between these two clubs, history is also in Arouca’s favor here, and given their more experienced squad on paper, we anticipate they will edge this matchup and hand the visitors their first loss of the season.