Corinthians took the lead in the search for their fifth Paulistão Feminino title this Friday (15), with a 1-0 victory over Palmeiras, at home, at the Neo Química Arena, in São Paulo, in front of an audience of 34,418 fans.
The home team dominated the entire first half, with greater passing precision and pressure on the opponent’s ball. Palmeiras, in turn, repeatedly resorted to long passes, trying to avoid the Corinthians midfield.
The only goal of the match came 7 minutes into the first half. It started with a long throw-in from Isabela to Gabi Portilho, who quickly reversed it to Milene. She delayed the ball to Gabi Zanotti, who entered the area alone and killed goalkeeper Kate Tapia with a strong left-footed shot.
Alviverde’s best opportunity in the first half came only in the 38th minute, when Lais Estevam received the ball alone in the area, but shot wide. Corinthians scored again in the 4th minute of stoppage time. In a confusing move, referee Edina Alves disallowed the goal (there were players offside) and gave Corinthians a free kick in a previous play.
More aggressive and organized in the second half, Palmeiras had their best chance of the match in the 34th minute of the second half, when Amanda Gutierrez crossed into the area and Dudinha, in front of goal, shot over goalkeeper Lelê’s crossbar. In stoppage time, Amanda Gutierrez headed the corner ball and Paulinha made a save almost from the top of the line.
The two teams have already met four other times this year, with two victories for each side. Both teams reach the final evenly matched in the championship, with seven wins, one draw and one defeat each. The Alviverde team was only beaten by Santos, 2-1, the same score by which they beat their opponents this Friday in July.
In the semis, Palmeiras passed Ferroviária, while Corinthians left São Paulo behind.
The return takes place on Wednesday (20), at 3:30 pm, at the Brinco de Ouro da Princesa stadium, in Campinas.
