Brazilian Serie A - 17th round

Three matches on Saturday and seven on Sunday make up the 17th round of the 2007 Brazilian Serie A football league. The most important match will likely be the last, with Gremio hosting Sao Paulo needing to win to close the gap between itself (currently with 25 points) and its opponent (31 points), which is tied with Botafogo for the league's lead. Botafogo will also have a tough time, going to Curitiba to face Parana.

Here's a brief preview of this weekend's games (updates on player injuries and suspensions for Sunday's games coming later):

CORINTHIANS x GOIAS
With ten games and counting, Corinthians hopes to finally win a game after nearly two months without a victory. The win that escaped in the final minutes of the road game against Atletico Paranaense on Wednesday may not be reached in this game, since the opponent is persistent Goias, currently fourth in the standings. Goias lost its last road game 4-1 to Vasco, but the result was not really a reflection of the quality of both teams. The visitors have a good chance of getting at least a point here. Veteran midfielder Vampeta will start for Corinthians, right-back Edson is suspended and Marcelo Oliveira replaces Dinelson, out for several months with a knee injury. Defender Leonardo returns from suspension for Goias, and forward Fabricio Carvalho may be taken out of the team after not scoring a goal in more than one month. Midfielder Harison and forward Cristiano may make their debut for the visitors.

AMERICA NATAL x NAUTICO
The relegation zone matchup could be a preview of more games to come between these teams next year, only in the Serie B. America hopes it can get its second home win of the season against an inconsistent opponent, but Nautico has been improving of late, getting good results against traditional teams from the Brazilian Southeast. Desperation should be the tone of the match here, and any result is possible. Defender Cris and midfielder Marquinhos are out suspended for America, but defender Edson Borges comes back after sitting out the game against Botafogo with a suspension. Midfielder Acosta is suspended for Nautico. Midfielder Radames and forwards Felipe and Ferreira have served a one-game ban and will likely play. Left-back Hamilton is also out after accumulating three yellow cards.

SPORT x ATLETICO PARANAENSE
Sport heroically defeated Palmeiras on Wednesday in Sao Paulo, absorbing the shock of falling behind early in the game and having a player sent off to score twice and holding on to the win, despitehaving only nine men against eleven for the last 15 minutes of the game. Home fans should be happy to welcome the team back to Recife this Saturday, in a match against Atletico Paranaense, still feeling the effects of several missing players. Sport will be without full-back Dutra, defender Igor and midfielder Bilica, suspended, and injured Everton. Atletico is still missing four starters due to injury, but defender Gustavo, midfielder Claiton and left-back Edno return to the team.

VASCO x FIGUEIRENSE
After getting its second road win of the season in the impressive 2-0 victory over Internacional in Porto Alegre, Vasco returns home to host Figueirense on Sunday. Now in third place, the team hopes to get support from its home fans against a Figueirense team that will likely take a defensive approach to the match. The visitors had a good 1-0 home win over Gremio on Thursday, but will have a hard time getting away with a point here. Defender and captain Jorge Luis is out for Vasco, and Rubesn Junior may play improvised in his place. Guilherme will likely get another chance as left-back, while forward Enilton may make his debut. Roberto Lopes is out suspended. Figueirense will try to break Vasco's perfect record at home with the debut of right-back Cesar Prates, who played for Vasco in 2004. Ruy is out after being sent off against Gremio. Otacilio Neto returns in attack, while Carlinhos and Fernandes are still out with an injury.

FLUMINENSE x PALMEIRAS
The Maracana Stadium in Rio is finally available for the Brazilian Serie A again, after being closed for over a month in preparation and during the Pan American Games in Rio de Janeiro in July. Fluminense welcomes the return home, having two draws and a loss in its last three games. Palmeiras believes getting away from Sao Paulo can help the team forget about the embarrassing 2-1 home loss to Sport on Wednesday, when the team scored early and failed to capitalize on the opponent's two sending-offs during the game. Right-back Carlinhos is probable, but his presence will have to be confirmed at game-time. Forward Edmundo returns to Palmeiras, with left-back Leandro and midfielder Makelele also joining the starting lineup. Defender Nen is suspended.

CRUZEIRO x INTERNACIONAL
Now officially without its star youngtser Alexandre Pato, Inter travels to Belo Horizonte trying to recover from the 2-0 home loss at the hands of Vasco on Wednesday. The team still has a decent 5-2 record over its last seven games, and can't be counted out on this one. Cruzeiro's game against Flamengo on Wednesday was postponed till next month, but the team hopes it can deliver another strong performance, similar to the one that resulted in a 3-2 home win against first place Botafogo on Sunday. Forward Araujo has left Cruzeiro for Catar, but Alecsandro will be available after coming back from Portugal. Thiago Heleno and Leo Silva return from suspension, while forward Guilherme is out after accumulating three yellow cards. This will be the first game for Inter after Alexandre Pato was sold to AC Milan. Magrao and Guinazu may make their debut for Inter, with defender Marcao also returning from suspension. Edinho and Alex are out suspended, while Pinga is questionable after getting injured in the 2-0 loss to Vasco.

SANTOS x FLAMENGO
Santos managed to halt a two-game losing streak with a 2-1 away win over Atletico Mineiro on Wednesday. The team is still far from the leaders, and time may be running out for a rally that would send the team to the top of the standings. If Santos hopes to climb the standings, it must take all three points in games like this, against a team in the relegation zone. Flamengo's stats are still a bit off, however, since the team has played four less games than most of its opponents due to last month's Pan American Games in Rio. Coach Joel Santana makes his debut for Flamengo. Ibson and Maxi Biancucchi - Lionel Messi's cousin - may make their debut. Roger will likely start in midfield, after coming in from the bench in the match against Corinthians. Santos will be without left-back Carlinhos and midfielder Rodrigo Souto, suspended. Pedrinho is still questionable in midfield.

JUVENTUDE x ATLETICO MINEIRO
Atletico tries to regroup after losing 2-1 at home to Santos, the first loss under new coach Emerson Leao. Meanwhile, Juventude returns home, where it's played decently this season, hoping to get three points to climb out of the relegation zone. The locals are unbeaten in five at home. Forwards Michel and Tadeu are still out with injuries, and midfielder Marcao is suspended. Eder Luis returns to Atletico, but midfielder Rafael Miranda is out with an injury.

GREMIO x SAO PAULO
After falling on the road to Figueirense on Thursday, Gremio knows it must win to continue chasing leaders Sao Paulo and Botafogo from close range. A loss doesn't mean the team will be out of the title race, of course, but things will be a lot tougher if the locals can't use this head-to-head matchup to gain some ground. Sao Paulo is coming off four straight wins, including Thursday's come-from-behind 3-1 triumph at home over Juventude. Andre Dias and Alex Silva are questionable in defense, but may play for Sao Paulo. Dagoberto and Aloisio are still out in the attack. Colombian right-back Bustos may make his debut for Gremio, which will have the return of midfielder Gavilan. Forward Tuta may also return, after recovering from an injury.

PARANA x BOTAFOGO
Botafogo survived two tying goals from America Natal on Wednesday to score a 4-2 win. But the biggest win for the leaders came one day later, when star forward Dodo had his 120-day suspension for doping lifted by the country's top Sports Court. Dodo may even return to the team on this game, depending on his conditioning. Parana lost three straight, including its last home game - a 3-1 loss to Atletico Mineiro. Joilson is out for Botafogo. Beto is suspended and Lima is out with an injury for the locals, who have won three, tied one and lost four of the eight matches it played at home in this year's Serie A.