The definition of the Brazilian Championship was left for the last round. Palmeiras beat Cruzeiro 2-1, coming from behind, on Wednesday night (4), in Belo Horizonte, with a free kick from Estêvão in the 45th minute of the second half, and fueled the hope of overtaking the current leader. Botafogo, who beat Internacional 1-0, in Porto Alegre.
The table now shows the black and white team with 76 points, against 73 for the black and white team. In a possible tie on points, the title would go to the team from the west of São Paulo, which would have one more victory.
To lift the trophy, however, Palmeiras will have to count on the help of rival São Paulo, who are no longer fighting for anything in the competition (they will finish in sixth place, anyway) and will visit Botafogo on Sunday (8). The current vice-leader will play at home, against Fluminense.
There is only one scenario for the change in first place, with a victory for Palmeiras and a defeat for Botafogo in the final round. Any other combination will give the cup to General Severiano’s team.
This Wednesday, Palmeiras faced Cruzeiro without an audience at Mineirão – for security reasons, after the death of a Cruzeiro man in an ambush by Palmeiras fans. There were a lot of chances in the first half, which ended goalless.
In the final stage, the celestial team took the lead, after seven minutes, in a move by Marlon completed with skill by Matheus Pereira. The white team reacted quickly and tied at 16, after a pass from Richard Ríos and a finish from Maurício, deflected in defense.
The score remained tied until the final moments, when Estêvao went after the marker and got a free kick from Lucas Silva. The 18-year-old himself made an excellent shot, into Cássio’s left corner, at 45.
“I’m very proud of this team. We fight every minute. Like Abel [Ferreira, técnico] Tell us, every game is a final. We managed to come out with the victory. It was important for us. And we’re going to continue chasing the championship because there’s still one game left”, said the young man.
“I made a dream come true today. Anyone who knows my story knows that I always came to Mineirão to watch the games”, added the striker, who played for Cruzeiro in the youth teams. “I told my father that one day I would score a goal here. Today I was able to achieve it.”
The competition is not over, but Botafogo came even closer to the title with its triumph over Internacional in Beira-Rio. The score was decided at the beginning of the match, after a corner kick that reached Savarino’s feet, in the half-moon, in the fifth minute. At first, with the ball in the air, the Venezuelan hit a beautiful shot.
The second half was dominated by the Colorado team, which had good moments and even clearer opportunities in the final part. In stoppage time, Borré was left in the small area and finished, but his shot was blocked by goalkeeper Gatito Fernández, who sees the victory close.
If confirmed, the title will be tasty for General Severiano’s team, who had the cup in their hands last season and handed it to Palmeiras, who were 13 points behind. The script almost repeated itself this year, with three consecutive stumbles and the loss of leadership to Palmeiras itself, in the 35th round. In the 36th, however, the black and white team defeated the black and white team 3-1, away from home, and regained the lead.
