The state championship finals were very weak matches. Riots, insults, excessive fouls and pressure on referees and assistants prevailed, until the shameful widespread beating in the game between Atlético and Cruzeiro, with the expulsion of 23 players.
The hostile and aggressive environment on the pitch has to do with the violence that is ravaging the country. Players feel pressure to show that they do everything to win the game, even what is not right.
The matches were very bad because there was no creation of plays in midfield and attack, not because the defensive systems performed very well.
Palmeiras and Novorizontino have a great argument for the poor quality of the game: the heavy rains and the flooding of the pitch. Even so, Palmeiras showed their strength in long balls and set pieces. That’s how the two goals came out.
The team has two excellent duos, the midfield, formed by Andreas Pereira and Marlon, and the attack, with Vitor Roque and Flaco Lopes. There is a lack of better connection between the two pairs.
Goals from set pieces, a characteristic of Palmeiras and, increasingly, of world football teams, such as Arsenal, from England, is a virtue that has been added to the teams’ other qualities. Goals from set pieces and goals from beautiful plays, exchanges of passes and triangulations are not excluded. It’s an evolution. Football didn’t get uglier because of goals from dead balls, as some people think.
Flamengo and Fluminense also played a lackluster and emotionless game. Fla played worse than in the last matches. The team did not act with the exchange of passes and control of the ball that existed under the command of Filipe Luís nor was it a quick team in transitions from defense to attack, as Cruzeiro was under coach Leonardo Jardim. Flu repeated the bad match against Vasco.
Cruzeiro was better than Atlético because it has a good collective structure formed since last year. Atlético remains weak as a whole and individually. The club hired very poorly in recent years by bringing in very expensive players, as if they were in the best moments of their careers. Some insist that the cast is very good.
The only beautiful moment of the game was Cruzeiro’s goal. Matheus Pereira made a beautiful pass to Gerson, who crossed with precision. Kaio Jorge, after a great impulse, headed with enormous efficiency. The three are among the best players in their positions playing in Brazil.
This Wednesday (11), Flamengo and Cruzeiro face each other in the Brasileirão, at Maracanã. It will be the meeting of Cruzeiro players with Leonardo Jardim. The coach, when he left the Minas Gerais team, said he was naive when he said he was leaving due to personal problems and that he would not play for any other Brazilian club other than Cruzeiro. Cruzeiro’s president, Pedrinho, a successful businessman, stated during the title celebration that he was naive in releasing coach Leonardo Jardim from the contract termination fine. He also said that he needs to learn from the world of football.
Football is not a sport of entertainment, emotion, strategies, talents and sporting competition. It’s much more than that. It is also a meeting of correct professionals, the naive, the smart and the clever.
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