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Photo: Cabanas Gets Shot

Bruno Romani — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 16:56:36 +0000

EURO Photo: Casilla’s defending Di Rossi’s shot.

Wrapping Up Brazilian Football in 2009

Bruno Romani — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 06:25:02 +0000

BRAZIL INTERNATIONAL

Confederations Cup
Finished in: 1st
Players who scored: Luis Fabiano (5); Kaka (2); Felipe Melo, Maicon, Lucio, Juan, Robinho (1)

World Cup Qualifying
Finished in: 1st
Players who scored in 2009: Luis Fabiano (5); Nilmar (4); Julio Baptista (2); Kaka, Robinho, Luisao, Daniel Alves, Felipe Melo, Juan (1)

Who scored in the year
Luis Fabiano (11); Nilmar (6); Kaka, Robinho (3); Julio Baptista, Felipe Melo, Juan, Daniel Alves (2); Elano, Lucio, Luisao (1).

CAMPEONATO BRASILEIRO

Serie A (First Division)
Champion: Flamengo
Runner-Up: Inter
Qualified for Copa Libertadores: Flamengo, Inter, Sao Paulo, Cruzeiro
Qualified for Sudamericana: Palmeiras, Avai, Atletico-MG, Gremio, Goias, Barueri, Santos, Vitoria
Relegated: Coritiba, Santo Andre, Nautico, Sport
Top Striker: Adriano (Flamengo) and Diego Tardelli (Atletico-MG) – 19 goals

Serie B
Champion: Vasco
Runner Up: Guarani
Promoted to Serie A: Vasco, Guarani, Ceara, Atletico-GO
Relegated to Serie C: Juventude, Fortaleza, Campinense, ABC
Top Striker: Rafael Coelho (Figueirense), Marcelo Nicácio (Fortaleza), Élton (Vasco) – 17 goals

Serie C
Champion: America-MG
Runner Up: ASA de Arapiraca
Promoted to Serie B: America-MG, ASA, Icasa, Guaratingueta
Relegated to Serie D: Sampaio Corrêa, Confiança-SE, Mixto-MT, Marcílio Dias-SC
Top Striker: Nena (ASA), Marciano (Icasa) – 8 goals

Serie D
Champion: Sao Raimundo
Runner Up: Macae
Promoted to Serie C: Sao Raimundo, Macae, Chapecoense, Alecrim
Top Striker: Michell (Sao Raimundo) – 10 goals

COPA DO BRASIL

Champion: Corinthians
Runner Up: Internacional
Qualified to Libertadores: Corinthians
Top Striker: Taison (Internacional) – 7 goals

CONTINENTAL COMPETITIONS

Copa Libertadores
Champion: Estudiantes (Argentina)
Runner Up: Cruzeiro (Brazil)
Top Striker: Boselli (Estudiantes) – 8 goals

Copa Sudamericana
Champion: LDU Quito (Ecuador)
Runner Up: Fluminense (Brazil)
Top Striker: Bieler (LDU) – 8 goals

South American Recopa
Champion: LDU Quito (Ecuador)
Runner Up: Internacional (Brazil)

STATE CHAMPIONSHIPS

Sao Paulo
Champion: Corinthians
Runner Up: Santos
Top Striker: Pedrao (Barueri) – 16 goals

Rio de Janeiro
Champion: Flamengo
Runner Up: Botafogo
Top Striker: Maicosuel (Botafogo) – 12 goals

Minas Gerais
Champion: Cruzeiro
Runner Up: Atletico-MG
Top Striker: Diego Tardelli (Atletico-MG) – 16 goals

Rio Grande do Sul
Champion: Internacional
Runner Up: Caxias
Top Striker: Taison (Internacional) – 15 goals

Parana
Champion: Atletico-PR
Runner Up: J.Malucelli
Top Striker: Rafael Moura (Atletico-PR) – 10 goals

Pernambuco
Champion: Sport
Runner Up: Nautico
Top Striker: Marcelo Ramos (Santa Cruz) – 18 goals

Bahia
Champion: Vitoria
Runner Up: Bahia
Top Striker: Neto Baiano (Vitoria) – 18 goals

Santa Catarina
Champion: Avai
Runner Up: Chapeconse
Top Striker: Bruno Cazarine (Chapecoense) – 17 goals

Goias
Champion: Goias
Runner Up: Atletico-GO
Top Striker: Felipe (Goias) – 16 goals

Ceara
Champion: Fortaleza
Runner Up: Ceara
Top Striker: Marcelo Nicácio (Fortaleza) – 13 goals

Rio Grande do Norte
Champion: Assu
Runner Up: Potyguar-CN
Top Striker: Lúcio (América) – 15 goals

Sergipe
Champion: Confiança
Runner Up: Sergipe
Top Striker: Hugo Henrique (Sergipe) – 18 goals

Paraiba
Champion: Sousa
Runner Up: Treze
Top Striker: Edmundo (Sousa) – 18 goals

Alagoas
Champion: ASA
Runner Up: Coruripe
Top Striker: Calmon (CRB) – 12 goals

Acre
Champion: Juventus
Runner Up: Rio Branco
Top Striker: Josa (Atlético), Ailton (Vasco) – 10 goals

Amazonas
Champion: America-AM
Runner Up: Nacional
Top Striker: Branco (Nacional) – 12 goals

Distrito Federal
Champion: Brasiliense
Runner Up: Brasilia
Top Striker: Fábio Júnior (Brasiliense)

Espirito Santo
Champion: Sao Mateus
Runner Up: Rio Branco
Top Striker: Paulinho Pimentel (Desportiva) – 14 goals

Maranhao
Champion: JV Lideral
Runner Up: Sampaio Correa
Top Striker: Romarinho (JV Lideral) – 13 goals

Mato Grosso
Champion: Luverdense
Runner Up: Araguai
Top Striker: Júnior Rocha (Luverdense) – 8 goals

Mato Grosso do Sul
Champion: Naviraiense
Runner Up: Ivinhema
Top Striker: Campanário (Naviraiense)

Piaui
Champion: Flamengo-PI
Runner Up: 4 de Julho
Top Striker: França (4 de Julho) – 23 goals

Rondonia
Champion: Vilhena
Runner Up: Genus
Top Striker: Saulo (Ariquemes), Marcos Canhoto (Gênus) – 12 goals

Roraima
Champion: Roraima
Runner Up: São Raimundo
Top Striker: Naílson (São Raimundo)

Tocantins
Champion: Araguaina
Runner Up: Palmas
Top Striker: Mauricinho (Araguaína), Luca (Palmas) – 14 goals

*As I write, Amapa and Para have not closed their tournaments

**With this post, I consider myself on vacation. I may drop by between now and the beginning of next season, but do not expect much. Happy holidays!

The Best of Brasileirao

Bruno Romani — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 03:58:36 +0000

One day after the end of 2009 Campeonato Brasileiro, the best players of the tournament were awarded. Placar, the most traditional football magazine in Brazil, handed for the 40th time the Bola de Prata (silver ball) and the Bola de Ouro (golden ball). Later, CBF awarded its Craque Brasileirão, a newer prize but the one that gets an official seal. And despite that the two prizes have different criteria to chose the best, only 4 differences took place.

For one of the defensive midfielders, Placar chose Palmeiras’ Pierre whereas CBF picked Sao Paulo’s Hernanes again. As leftback, Placar chose Kleber (the one Dunga dropped from the national team) while CBF picked Julio Cesar from Goias. For one of the offensive midfielders, Placar picked Marcelinho Paraiba who was relegated with Coritiba while CBF picked Palmeiras’ Diego Souza.

The two awards diverged regarding Brasileirao’s MVP. Placar handed it to Adriano while CBF picked Diego Souza.

The Bola de Prata squad, prize handed by Placar, is chosen in the following way. Journalists from the magazine watch every game at the stadium and grades each player from 0 to 10. The best averages in each position take the Bola de Prata. The best average of all takes the Bola de Ouro. So this is their team:

GOALKEEPER:
Victor (Grêmio)

RIGHTBACK:
Jonathan (Cruzeiro)

CENTERBACKS
André Dias (São Paulo)
Miranda (São Paulo)

LEFTBACK:
Kleber (Internacional)

DEFENSIVE MIDFIELDERS:
Pierre (Palmeiras)
Guiñazu (Internacional)

OFFENSIVE MIDFIELDERS:
Marcelinho Paraiba (Coritiba)
Petkovic (Flamengo)

FORWARDS:
Diego Tardelli (Atlético-MG)
Adriano (Flamengo)

GOLDEN BALL (MVP OF THE TOURNAMENT):
Adriano (Flamengo)

The team of the Craque Brasileirão Prize, award handed by CBF, is chosen in a different way. Players, coaches and journalists vote on the players they think were the best:

GOALKEEPER:
Victor (Grêmio)

RIGHTBACK:
Jonathan (Cruzeiro)

CENTERBACKS
André Dias (São Paulo)
Miranda (São Paulo)

LEFTBACK:
Júlio César (Goiás)

DEFENSIVE MIDFIELDERS:
Hernanes (São Paulo)
Guiñazu (Internacional)

OFFENSIVE MIDFIELDERS:
Diego Souza (Palmeiras)
Petkovic (Flamengo)

FORWARDS:
Diego Tardelli (Atlético-MG)
Adriano (Flamengo)

MVP OF THE TOURNAMENT:
Diego Souza (Palmeiras)

CBF also hands the following awards:

BEST COACH:
Andrade (Flamengo)

BEST NEW TALENT:
Fernandinho (Barueri)

BEST PLAYER CHOSEN BY THE FANS:
Conca (Fluminense)

Video: Chaos and Violence After the Relegation of Coritiba

Bruno Romani — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 05:12:45 +0000

The firms and fans of Coritiba could not take the relegation at home and in the year of its centenary. They invaded the pitch and beat anyone on their way. There is a lot of information, some are rumors, about injured people. This is what I found:

- According to Folha de S. Paulo, 4 injured people;
-One police officer was shot outside the stadium;
-One of Fluminense’s security men broke an arm;
-Buses and a Shopping Center were thrashed;
-Rocks were thrown at the house of Cuca, Fluminense’s coach. He is from Curitiba and his wife and daughter live in the city.

The videos, in 3 parts:

(Start this at 3:45 to watch the continuation from the video above)

My Opinion

Coritiba should be banned from national competitions for a few years. It was a matter of luck that no one died. And to spread violence because of a game is pure stupidity. It shows how low human beings can go.

Picture: Globo.com

Rogerio Ceni Closes the Season With Another Goal

Bruno Romani — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 04:23:39 +0000

Sao Paulo’s goalie closed the season with another goal. it was his 85th (87th, given that FIFA does not count 2 goals). This time, the victim was Sport.

The Best Brasileirao of History is History Now

Bruno Romani — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 03:56:19 +0000

The best Campeonato Brasileiro of history, and one of the best in the world, came to an end today. After 38 rounds, 4 clubs were fighting for the title: Flamengo, Inter, Palmeiras and Sao Paulo. Many were the possibilities. And three of them won.

Flamengo, with goals by David and Ronaldo Angelim, became the champion for the 6th time. Roberson scored for Gremio.

Inter thrashed and relegated Santo Andre 4-1, with goals by Alecssandro, defender Indio, Andrezinho (with another beautiful free-kick this season) and the promising Giuliano. Santo Andre’s last goal in the first division was scored by the good striker Nunes. With that, Inter finished in second and is going to the Libertadores.

Sao Paulo threw Sport’s farewell party. And the club from Recife will have to go to the second division with a 4-0 defeat. Washington, with a hat-trick, and goalie Rogerio Ceni, with a nice free-kick, scored the goals that took Sao Paulo to its 7th participation in a row in the Libertadores.

Shame is Green

The biggest disappointment of the tournament was Palmeiras. The club led the tournament for 20 rounds and arrived to the 38th round with chances of title. The result? The club did not even qualify for the Copa Libertadores. Palmeiras visited Botafogo, who was trying to escape, relegation and lost 2-1. (Wellington and Jobson scored for Bota; Robert for Palmeiras in the last minute).

This defeat combined with Cruzeiro’s 2-1 victory over Santos sent this year’s runner-up of the Libertadores one more time to the continental competition. The irony of all this? The goal that eliminated Palmeiras, was scored by Cruzeiro’s Kleber, the man who professed his love before to Palmeiras. Obviously, Luxemburgo wasn’t sad at all with Santos defeat, since he is still bitter for being fired from Palmeiras. The other goals of the match were scored by Wellington Paulista (Cruzeiro) and Neymar (Santos).

Clubs from Rio escape from Relegation

With the results already mentioned, Santo Andre was relegated and Botafogo escaped.

All attentions were in the Coritiba – Fluminense match. Whoever lost was going to the second division. the first-half ended 1-1, Marquinhos for Flu and Jeci for Coritiba scored. With the combination of the other matches, Fluminense ended its great recovery campaign saving itself. The draw relegated Coritiba at home in the year of its centenary. The fans went crazy and chaos took place, with fans beating anyone on their way, including the police.

Completely Unimportant

Atletico 0 – 3 Corinthians: After the match, Atletico’s Celso Roth was fired. Corinthians won with two goals by Sousa, a man who was hired to score many goals and failed miserably. The other goals was by Bill at the last minute. And Diego Tardelli missed a penalty. In general, the two sides had disappointing campaigns.

Nautico 0 – 1 Avai: Avai, under coach Silas, ended its excellent campaign with a goal by Eltinho. Nautico was already relegated.

Barueri 0 – 0 Atletico-PR: In its first year in first division, Barueri to stay with a solid campaign.

Vitoria 2 – 2 Goias: Roger and Leandro Domingues, Vitoria’s best two in the tournament, scored. Felipe scored twice for the reserve side of Goias.

After 17 Years, Flamengo Rules Brazil

Bruno Romani — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 03:10:39 +0000

It felt like it was never going to happen again. It seemed that Brazilian titles were going to be connected forever to the generation of Zico and Junior. But, today, Flamengo fans were released from the past. The most popular side in Brazil took home its 6th national title – the first since 1992.

And ironically, in order to live the present, Fla relied on characters from the past. Adriano returned to the club he loves and was, not only the top striker of the competition with 19 goals, but also one of the best of the entire tournament. Petkovic, the 37 year old Serbian playmaker, returned to Fla in a deal which seemed good only for the player. Fla had a huge sum of money to pay him from past contracts, but he exchanged some of that money for a place in the club when no other team in Brazil wanted him. Many thought he was over. And he conducted Fla with great flair.

But the biggest character of all, and that’s the beauty of it, belongs to the Zico generation. Andrade, the intelligent midfielder who won as a player the titles in 80, 82, 83 and 87, was the coach. And not that he was the first option. In fact, Andrade was an interim who made it happen. It was destiny. His first title as a coach had to be with Flamengo. More than that: Andrade is the first Black coach to win a Brazilian title. Historical, indeed.

This Sunday, 80 thousand fans were at the Macarana waiting for a simple victory against Gremio, a side that had only 1 victory playing away. Not only that, Gremio sent a reserve squad and had very little interest in winning. A victory was going to help Gremio’s main rival, Inter. But Gremio honored its history and made it very hard. With 21 minutes, Roberson opened the score for Gremio. Inter and Sao Paulo were winning their matches. Another Maracanazo? Adriano and Pet did not play well so a supporting character had to show up. It was up to David, a reserve defender who replaced Alvaro, to tie. The fans celebrated, but the title was still with Inter. And things did not change until the half of the second-half.

This time, Ronaldo Angelim, the other defender, wrote his name in the history books. With a header, he scored the goal that gave Flamengo its 6th title.

After that, it was matter of time for the fans to taste the glory again. When Flamengo wins, Brazil gets a bit happier. Congratulations, Flamengo!

Lots of cool pics here

More coverage at Globo.com and UOL.

What to Watch in the Last Round of Brasileirao

Bruno Romani — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 18:09:52 +0000

In about 24 hours the 2009 Campeonato Brasileiro, one of the best in history, will be over. But the last round reserved lots of emotions. The title can be lifted by 4 sides. Another 3 fight for 1 spot in the Copa Libertadores. And other 4 try to escape the two seats still available in the second division. So SeetheCup prepared this short guide on what to watch tomorrow. All the matches will played tomorrow 11am PT/2pm ET.

THE TITLE:

Flamengo (64 points), Inter (62), Palmeiras (62) and Sao Paulo (62) will try to take the title home. Flamengo is the one with more chances. Why? Because it needs just a simple victory at home against Gremio. The Maracana will be packed and Gremio already announced it will be sending a reserve squad to Rio. Gremio does not want to help Inter and Sao Paulo – the former for being the club’s biggest rival, and the latter for taking the title last year (when Gremio led most of the tournament). Big chances for Mengo.

If another Maracanazo takes place (which is not uncommon), then the other sides will have chances. The hard thing is that while Flamengo plays a side with no goals in the tournament, Inter and Palmeiras will play sides fighting relegation – which should produce tons of drama.

Inter will play Santo Andre at home, and has all the chances of getting a large score. Santo Andre needs a miracle to stay in the first division. Palmeiras has task even more difficult. It will play Botafogo in Rio, with Bota trying everything it can to escape. The good thing for Muricy Ramalho is that it will send to the pitch, for the first time in a long time, his 11 starters. Palmeirashas also to count that Inter will not beat Santo Andre.

Finally, Sao Paulo will face the impossible. All the 3 clubs above cannot win if the current champs want to take the title for the 4th time in a row. Sao Paulo will play at home against the worst side of the tournament, Sport, and it has to produce a large victory and pray.

Now, you may have noticed. It’s possible that the 4 sides will finish with 65 points. In that case, Inter will take the title because it has more victories than the other teams. With all this, this is what each clubs needs to win the Brasileirao

Flamengo: A victory against Gremio, A draw against Gremio as long as Inter does not win.
Inter: Victory against Santo Andre and at least a draw from Flamengo.
Palmeiras: Victory against Botafogo and draws, at least, from Inter and Flamengo. In case Flamengo and Inter lose, and Palmeiras and Sao Paulo win, Palmeiras has to keep the goal advantage it has over Sao Paulo (3 goals).
Sao Paulo: Victory against Sport and all the other sides cannot win. In case Sao Paulo and Palmeiras win, and the others lose, Sao Paulo has to score 4 more goals than Palmeiras. If, for instance, Palmeiras wins 1-0, Sao Paulo has to win 5-0.

LIBERTADORES

The chances that the 4 sides fighting for the title will be in the Copa Libertadores is huge, but Cruzeiro still has chances of taking the spots either from Sao Paulo or Palmeiras. Cruzeiro will visit Santos, which already gives signs of not offering trouble. Santos’ Luxemburgo is still angry at Palmeiras for being fired earlier this year, and he will not do much effort to help the green side.

In order to go to the continental competition, Cruzeiro (59 points) has to win and hope that either Palmeiras or Sao Paulo lose. If both lose, Cruzeiro takes the spot from Sao Paulo. But given the difficulties of the matches, it is more likely that Palmeiras will lose. Palmeiras and Sao Paulo go to the continental competition with a simple draw.

RELEGATION

With Sport and Nautico already relegated, 4 sides are trying to avoid the two spots to join them. They are Santo Andre (41 points), Botafogo (44), Coritiba (44) and Fluminense (45).

Santo Andre has the most difficult situation. It has to beat Inter in Porto Alegre and hope that both Botafogo and Coritiba lose at home. As we’ve seen, Botafogo will take on Palmeiras. At the same time, Coritiba will be taking on Fluminense. The hope for Santo Andre is that because the rivals of Botafogo and Coritiba have a lot at stakes, they will help Santo Andre to stay.

For Botafogo, besides having to beat Palmeiras, it counts on Fluminense beating Coritiba and Santo Andre not winning. But Botafogo can stay in the first division even if ties, as long as Coritiba loses against Flu. If Santo Andre, Botafogo and Coritiba finish with 44 points, Santo Andre is safe.

Coritiba and Fluminense will play a “final”. Whoever loses has great chances of relegation. Fluminense will save itself if it wins or draws. A defeat combined with a victory of Botafogo ends up with Flu relegated. With a victory, Coritiba also saves itself. It will be a great clash between Fred and Marcelinho Paraiba.

World Cup Groups Are In

Bruno Romani — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 17:45:47 +0000

And the groups are in. Brazil and Germany with the groups of death. Argentina playing a 1994 dejavu. Italy and Spain with the easiest groups.

Group A
South Africa
Mexico
Uruguay
France

Group B
Argentina
Nigeria
South Korea
Greece

Group C
England
USA
Algeria
Slovenia

Group D
Germany
Australia
Serbia
Ghana

Group E
Netherlands
Denmark
Japan
Cameroon

Group F
Italy
Paraguay
New Zealand
Slovakia

Group G
Brazil
North Korea
Ivory Cost
Portugal

Group H
Spain
Switzerland
Honduras
Chile

First Corruption Scandal Involving People from the 2014 WC

Bruno Romani — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 07:26:47 +0000

Fábio Simão, Arruda and Ricardo Teixeira (photo: P.Gualberto-09/17/08)

No one seems to be talking about this outside Brazil, so here we go.

The first scandal involving people working in the 2014 World Cup is already upon us. Fábio Simão, who heads the works of Brasilia for the World Cup, had to step down as one of the advisers of José Roberto Arruda, governor of the Federal District. Arruda was caught by the Brazilian federal police in a scheme which private firms gave financial bribes to him, the vice governor and, at least, 8 lFederal District legislative council members. Simão, who was his top adviser, stepped down with other 3 advisers.

But this is not his only job. Simão is the president of the Brasiliense Football Federation, and he was in charge of the public bid for the construction of the US$ 350 million stadium to be built for the cup (one of the most expensive projects, by the way). This is not to mention the close relationship with CBF and Ricardo Teixeira.

As I write this, it’s not clear whether he will step down from his works for 2014. Let’s hope so.

credit: Blog do Jose Cruz