More than the result, the undeniable superiority of the football played by the Minas Gerais team is a clear message for the Corinthians.
Sample of the semi-final, the duel between and for the 35th round of the ended in a massacre carried out by the Cruzeiro side, who won 3-0, at Mineirão. The championship’s top scorer, Kaio Jorge scored twice and reached 21 goals, before Arroyo closed the scoring.
More than the result, the undeniable superiority of the football played by the Minas Gerais team is a clear message for the Corinthians, who have placed a lot of hope in a possible title and are now suffering a shock of reality.
The two teams will meet again at Mineirão on December 10th, for the first game of the semi-final of the continental tournament. The decision on who will go to the final is scheduled for the 14th, at Arena Corinthians.
In , the Parque São Jorge club falls from ninth to tenth place, with 45 points and no longer has a chance of going to the Libertadores via the G-7, as it cannot reach seventh place, which has 55. If it does not win the Copa do Brasil, it will have to hope that the tournament is won by Cruzeiro – third place in the Brazilian Championship, with 68 -, or by Fluminense so that eighth place also gives place to the continental tournament.
Scorer of a great goal in the 3-1 victory over Corinthians on Thursday, the star missed Corinthians because of a knee sprain. Dorival Júnior, however, had the return of Rodrigo Garro, once again available after serving a suspension.
The Argentine midfielder was barely able to show the passing quality and game vision for which he is known, unlike Cruzeiro midfielder Matheus Pereira, whose ball runs terrified the disoriented Corinthians defense. Cruzeiro’s pressure was quite intense, especially during the first half of the initial stage.
The team led by coach Leonardo Jardim found it very easy to advance, especially on the left side, where Arroyo appeared a few times, receiving balls from the right, with plenty of space to explore. After the rebound of a shot by Arroyo, Kaio Jorge dropped a bomb from the edge of the area to beat Felipe Longo, open the scoring and extend the lead in the championship’s artillery leadership, now with 20 goals against 18 for Flamengo’s Arrascaeta.
Very dissatisfied with Corinthians performance, he removed Angileri, Raniele and Gui Negão after the break to replace Carrillo, Vitinho and André. Little changed in the performance of the São Paulo team, which found itself once again dominated by a much more concentrated and applied Cruzeiro.
The duo Arroyo and Kaio Jorge continued to harass the Corinthians defenders. A cross from the Ecuadorian, deflected by Tchoca in the middle of the way, led to the Brasileirão’s top scorer’s second goal in the match. Shortly after, it was Arroyo’s turn to score, in a counterattack initiated by a mistake by full-back Hugo.
To make matters worse for the black and white team, José Martínez was sent off for elbowing Matheus Pereira. Near the end, Sinisterra scored the fourth, but the goal was disallowed due to a foul in the shot.
Technical sheet
CRUISE 3 X 0 CORINTHIANS
CRUZEIRO – Cássio; William, Fabrício Bruno, Lucas Villalba and Kaiki (Kauã Prates); Lucas Romero (Walace), Lucas Silva, Christian (Japa) and Matheus Pereira; Keny Arroyo (Sinisterra) and Kaio Jorge (Gabriel). Coach: Leonardo Jardim.
CORINTHIANS – Felipe Longo; Gustavo Henrique, João Pedro Tchoca and Angileri (Vitinho); Matheuzinho, Raniele (Carrillo), Breno Bidon (Dieguinho), Rodrigo Garro (José Martínez) and Hugo; Gui Negão (André) and Yuri Alberto. Coach: Dorival: Junior.
GOALS – Kaio Jorge, 25 minutes into the first half and three minutes into the second half. Arroyo, 18 minutes into the second half.
REFEREE – Alex Gomes Stefano (RJ).
YELLOW CARDS – Lucas Romero, Fabrício Bruno and Arroyo (Cruzeiro). Matheuzinho and Hugo (Corinthians).
RED CARD – José Martínez.
INCOME – R$ 1,637,835.50.
AUDIENCE – 30,673 fans.
LOCATION – Mineirão, in Belo Horizonte (MG).
*With information from Estadão Conteúdo
Published by Nátaly Tenório
