Without winning in six games, Bahia reaches its worst sequence under the command of Rogério Ceni

Bahia is experiencing drama in the final stretch of the Brazilian Championship. Despite still being in the fight for a place in the next Copa Libertadores, the Squadron went into crisis and completed six games without winning in Series A. The team is going through its worst moment under the command of Rogério Ceni and equaled a mark that had not previously been achieved. four years ago.

Since the coach arrived at the Bahian club in September last year, this is the first time that the Tricolor has lost four matches in a row. In the last six matches, the team was defeated five times. They fell to: Flamengo (home), Vasco (away), São Paulo (home), Juventude (away) and Palmeiras (home). The only point won in the period was in the 1-1 draw with Cruzeiro, at Mineirão.

The bad phase left Bahia with the alert on, as the goal in 2024 is to win a place in the Libertadores, a tournament that it has not played in since 1989. In the Brasileirão, the Esquadrão remains in 8th place, with 46 points, one away from Cruzeiro, which closes the classification zone. However, if they want to achieve their goal, the squad will have to recover quickly, as there are only four games left until the end of the season.

The bad moment has made the club hit negative marks. Since 2022, Bahia has not lost three consecutive matches at home, for example. That year, the tricolor was defeated consecutively by Chapecoense (1×0, in Series B), Athletico-PR (2×1, in the Copa do Brasil) and Novorizontino (1×0, in Series B). The sequence caused the dismissal of coach Guto Ferreira, who was replaced by Enderson Moreira. The team added two more draws, against Grêmio and CRB, and only won again at Fonte Nova in the sixth duel, when they beat Náutico 3×0, in the Second Division.

In Series A, the Squadron did not know what it was like to lose three consecutive games at home since 2020, when they were defeated by São Paulo (3×1), Ceará (2×0) and Internacional (2×1). The negative count is even greater, since, between the clashes, the blue, red and white team was also beaten by Defensa y Justicia (3×2), in the first match of the quarter-finals of the Copa Sudamericana.

This year, Rogério Ceni’s Bahia also went through a period of oscillation in which they went six matches without winning, between the Brasileirão and the Copa do Brasil. But, in the period in question, they recorded three defeats and three draws. Despite the scenario, the coach stated that he still believes in a comeback.

“The team didn’t settle down, there’s nothing like that. We will fight for what we say, for our objective, which is now seventh place in the Championship. If another vacancy appears… it is true that the distances have decreased, Corinthians is closer. But we have to play for our goal”, said Ceni.

Stationed at 46 points, the Squadron saw the competitors approaching. Corinthians, as mentioned by the coach, is out of the fight against relegation and, with 44 points, is already on the Tricolor’s back. Bahia, however, can still benefit from the opening of another place for the Libertadores via the Brasileirão, if Cruzeiro wins the South American title, this Saturday (23), in the final against Racing. In this scenario, the Minas Gerais team would go to Liberta directly and transform the G7 into the G8.

The chance to shake off the bad phase and win again this season will be this Sunday (24), against Athletico-PR, at 4pm, at Fonte Nova.

“I keep asking them that question. It’s still possible, even with a lower second round, it’s still possible to reach the Libertadores next year. The second round is lower for any team, but we still have the opportunity to reach the Libertadores, which would be important for our objective”, concluded Ceni.