Brasileiro: Sao Paulo is the New (?) Sensation

It is ironic, but the new sensation of Campeonato Brasileiro is Sao Paulo, the club that lifted the trophy in the last three years. After a very bad start, the firing of Muricy Ramalho, the questions about Ricardo Gomes and the players and seating on the 15th spot, Sao Paulo reached the second spot. More than that, the 20th round was perfect – Sao Paulo pocketed the 3 points whereas all of its rivals (Palmeiras, Inter, Goias and Atletico-MG) in the top of the table lost points.

Sao Paulo received Fluminense, the club from Rio on the edge of relegation. The match celebrated the return of goalie Rogerio Ceni, but the main name of the 1-0 victory was midfielder Richarlysson. The number 20 played well as a defender and scored the only goal of the match. It was the 7th victory in a row by Sao Paulo, and the 9th match without a defeat ( there was one more victory and one draw). Fluminense completed its 11th round in the relegation zone.

Palmeiras, the leader and sensation of the tournament until Muricy Ramalho took over, visited Coritiba and collapsed after a very poor job of the referee. The man with the whistle ejected two players from each side. The last one of them, defender Marcao from Palmeiras, was red carded after Coritiba was awarded a penalty that did not exist. The penalty was taken and converted by Marcelinho Paraiba, the best player of the team, in the stoppage time. It was the first defeat of Muricy Ramalho ahead of Palmeiras. In 6 matches, Ramalho won only 9 points.

Inter, the hyped side of the first rounds and candidate for the title, lost for the first time at home. The rival was well known. Corinthians returned to the Beira-Rio after lifting Copa do Brasil, and counted on the ref too. In the 2-1 victory, the goals by Chicao and Jorge Henrique were both offside. The locals scored through Alecssandro. Corinthians reached the second victory in a row, and is back on the fight for the title a few rounds after coach Mano Menezes saying to the press that his team did not have more chances to win it.

Goias, who seated in second, missed the chance of jumping to first. The green team visited Nautico, the first team in the relegation zone, and lost 2-0. Goias was dominated throughout most of the match, and, despite hitting the cross bar, it could avoid the defeat. Leandro Eusébio scored an own goal in the first half, and Anderson Lessa in the of the match gave finals numbers.

Finally, Atletico-MG completed the perfect round for Sao Paulo. The ex-leader received the thrilling side from Florianopolis, Avai. And the second-half was really worth watching. Despite the great goalie Eduardo Martini (one of the best this season), Atletico jumped ahead with a two goal lead, goals by Eder Luis and Marcos Rocha on the 2nd and 8th marks. However, left-back Eltinho and Odar, in the last minute, tied the match. The result was pure karma. The match played by these two sides in Florianopolis was also a 2 goal draw, with the home team opening 2-0 and allowing the visitors to tie.

Disappointment

Gremio fans must be disappointed. The side coached by Paulo Autuori visited the shaky side of Santos and failed to win points again. Santos won with a single goal by the promising midfielder Paulo Henrique Ganso. With that, Gremio is by far the worst visitor of the torunament, having won only 2 points outside it stadium.

Botafogo fans must be disappointed. The club played at home against Santo Andre, direct rival in the relegation fight, and lost. Junior Dutra, who scored one and gave an assist to Nunes, was the man of the match. The goal by Andre Lima from the spot not only could not avoid the defeat, but also it could not prevent the return of Botafogo to the relegation zone.

Sport fans must be really disappointed. The club still seats in the last place, with perspectives of relegation very real. This time, the club visited Barueri, who recently lost its coach, and lost again in the last minute. In the 2-1, the top striker Val Baiano scored its 10th goal, but Thiago Humberto was the hero by scoring in the 90th minute.

Flamengo fans must be disappointed. After losing against Gremio, the club received Cruzeiro at Maracana. Emerson scored first, but Fla allowed Cruzeiro to comeback with goals by Diego Renan, the promising kid mentioned here before, and Fabricio. Besides that, Flamengo lost Fabricio with a knee injury caused by bad boy Kleber. It is the second player seriously injured Fla lost inone month. Kleberson injured his should in the Brazil – Estonia match.

Record

Vitoria beat Atletico-PR at home 2-1. As you noticed 5 matches in this round ended with the 2-1 result. But this is not the record set by this match. Veteran midfielder Ramon scored his 93rd goal in the history of Campeonato Brasileiro. This put him in the top 10 scorers of the history of the tournament. The 93 goals were scored in 18 editions of the league. Congratulations!

The other goal for the locals was scored by Neto Berola (who I just find the last name too funny to ignore it).