O Coritiba beat Santos 3-0 this Sunday (17), at the Neo Química Arena, in São Paulo, in a game valid for the 16th round of the Brazilian Championship.
In front of 45,360 fans, Breno Lopes, twice, and Josué scored the goals of the match.
With the result, Coxa moves to sixth place, with 23 points. Peixe is in trouble and is in 16th place, with 18 points, just one away from the relegation zone.
Upcoming games
The teams now see the key to the next commitments. Santos will take to the field next Wednesday (20), at 7pm (Brasília time), against San Lorenzo, in the fifth round of the Sudamericana group stage.
Coritiba will host Bahia at Couto Pereira, for the Brazilian Championship, on May 25th, at 8pm (Brasília time).
Neymar applauded and scored early
Neymar was welcomed with celebration by Santos fans in Vila Belmiro. Applauded even before the opening whistle, the number 10 was moved during the playing of the national anthem.
With the ball rolling, the duel started intense and offensive on both sides. Santos tried to press in the opening minutes, but it was Coritiba who opened the scoring, just five minutes into the first half.
The Santos drama begins
After a fast counterattack, Josué threw it to Breno Lopes, who shot behind the Santos defense and hit Gabriel Brazão to put Coxa in front.
He tried to respond quickly with a shot from outside the area, but sent it out. Despite Santos’ attacks, Coritiba proved to be more efficient and extended the lead in the 19th minute.
Pedro Rocha made a great individual play, passing two markers inside the area and rolling the ball for Breno Lopes to complete the ball into the net. The striker scored his second of the match and reached his seventh goal of the season.
Paraná’s dominance increased due to the irritation of the Santos fans, who began to boo right-back Mayke. In the 31st minute, Escobar slipped off the ball and left Sebastián Gómez face to face with Brazão, who avoided the third goal with a great save.
The Santos drama escalated soon after. At 35, Escobar brought down Breno Lopes inside the area and the referee awarded a penalty for Coritiba.
From the charge, Josué converted with style, hitting Brazão’s right corner. In addition to extending Coxa’s advantage, the midfielder ended a 17-game streak without scoring in his 80th game for the club.
Santos still tried to reduce before the break. In the 40th minute, after a beautiful exchange of passes, Pedro Rangel shone with two decisive saves from shots by Escobar and Neymar. On the rebound, Rollheiser had the last chance, but shot wide.
Hot start
The second half started hot, with the players arguing on the field after Breno Lopes tried to push Neymar away from the referee’s side.
The ambulance quickly arrived to help the athlete. The defender tried to remain on the field, but was convinced by Santos’ doctor, Gabigol and Neymar to leave. João Ananias took his place.
Confusion over Neymar’s replacement
Neymar showed discomfort in his calf during the match. The number 10 lowered his midfielder and reached for the spot, but continued on the field. Shortly afterwards, he received treatment on the edge of the lawn, with a massage and spray applied to his right calf.
Afterwards, the fourth referee raised the sign indicating Neymar’s departure for Robinho Jr.’s entry, which led to confusion. The attacker quickly returned to the pitch asking to continue in the match and ended up being warned with a yellow card.
“A shame”, repeated the star as he headed towards the bench.
On social media, Santos classified the episode as “an inexplicable error that was not corrected”.
One less
The team also saw Barreal sent off in the 27th minute after a harsh tackle on Breno Lopes. The Coxa striker stood up after suffering the tackle, opening a smile and lifting his shorts to show the Libertadores cup tattooed towards the Santos fans.
The game continued to be tepid, with few chances created and many stoppages, which resulted in six minutes of stoppage time, but the score didn’t come from that: a solid 3-0 victory for Coritiba.
