Benfica vs. Arouca - prediction, team news, lineups

Now in the driving seat, Benfica will look to extend their explosive run and widen the gap at the summit when they welcome Arouca to Estadio da Luz on Sunday for round 29 of the Primeira Liga. The Eagles soared to the top of the standings with a commanding victory at Porto last weekend, moving two points clear of second-placed Sporting Lisbon, who stumbled in their matchday 28 fixture against Braga. Currently the most in-form side in the Portuguese top flight, Benfica come into this weekend's clash brimming with confidence after securing a ninth successive league win in emphatic style. The Reds made a dream start in last Sunday's O Classico at Estadio do Dragao, where they dismantled their fierce rivals with a ruthless 4-1 triumph, having opened the scoring inside the first minute through Vangelis Pavlidis, who went on to complete a hat-trick before Samu Aghehowa pulled one back, only for Nicolas Otamendi to hammer the final nail in. Bruno Lage's men had gone into that encounter level on points with the leag