Vasco da Gama 1 - 1 São Paulo Match preview

Vasco da Gama vs Sao Paulo Preview: Vasco da Gama are playing an awful season. They are in the relegation zone after collected just nine points in the first eleven rounds of the Brazilian Serie A. Coritiba and Joinville are the only sides placed below them. The fans are disappointed or better to say frustrated. June was a month to be forgotten, Vasco suffered five consecutive defeats. The end of the month brought some light and Vasco manage to beat Flamengo and Avai, but lost to Chapecoense in the previous round. It is very hard to evaluate the players confidence.
 However, something else is important for my pick - the last three matches have finished with Under 2.5 goals.
 Vasco managed to score just two goals, while conceded once. Look the results: 05.07.2015. Chapecoense v Vasco 1:0 02.07.2015. Vasco v Avai 1:0 28.06.2015. Vasco v Flamengo 1:0 The hosts are very handicapped as two players are sidelined due to suspension - defender Christiano and midfielder Jhon Cley. In addition, four players are out injured - Dagoberto, Diguinho, Martin Silva and Nei. Finally, Luan is on international duty with Brazilian U22 national team. Sao Paulo are in the middle of table.
 They have 18 points and I believe the fans could be satisfied. The first placed trio (Atletico Mineiro, Gremio and Sport Recife) have "just" five points more.
However, the next period will be crucial for their ambitions. A series of victories could easily see them closer to the top. But the actual form is poor - Sao Paulo have two defeats and one draw on the last three matches. Even worse, they managed to score just one goal on the mentioned three games. Look the results: 05.07.2015. Sao Paulo v Fluminense 0:0 02.07.2015. Atletico PR v Sao Paulo 2:1 28.06.2015. Palmeiras v Sao Paulo 4:0 Coach Juan Carlos Osorio has no new injury or suspension worries and has most of his players available. Nevertheless,
 Alan Kardec, Daniel and Denis remain out injured. At the end I will mention that the last four mutual games between Vasco and Sao Paulo played in Rio de Janeiro ended with Under 2.5 goals. Here are the last two: 15.09.2013. Vasco v Sao Paulo 0:2 11.10.2012.
 Vasco v Sao Paulo 0:2 Vasco da Gama vs Sao Paulo Prediction: I expect a low scoring match here. The tradition is one of the reasons, but not the only.
 Vasco are playing poor in the attack and they have scored just two goals on the last three matches. Sao Paulo, meanwhile, are even worse, they have scored just one goal on the last three matches in Serie A. The hosts are additionally handicapped through injuries and suspensions, so I expect no more than two goals on this match.