Flamengo and Corinthians say Hello to Relegation

By: Bruno Romani | July 23rd, 2007

The Campeonato Brasileiro gets more equilibrated after each round. Botafogo didn’t win again, and now at least 11 clubs fight for the top 3 spots. The club from Rio had 3-3 draw in the match against Sport in Recife. Carlinhos Bala scored 2 goals for the home team, a second a beautiful volley. André Lima pulled a hat-trick and proved that even when Botafogo does not play well, it manages not to lose.

In Curitiba, Paraná found a goal with a free-kick taken by Márcio Careca in a boring match. Palmeiras has been stopped and fell to the 9th spot, whereas Paraná moved to the third. The distance between the two sides is only 3 points.

Led by Somália and Thiago Neves, Fluminense beat Goiás by 3-0 and reached the same 20 points of the green team. The Flu, which seems to be ready to fight for the title, reached the 7th spot. Goiás is the 6th.

The 5th club is Vasco, which also has the coolest names in the league. Martin García, Conca and Alan Kardec scored in the 4-0 victory over a fading Atlético-MG. Rumors say coach Zetti is to leave Atlético.

In mid-table positions, but in opposite moments in the league, Santos and Figueirense clashed at the Vila. Santos had the debut of striker Kléber who spent the last seasons in Mexico. And it could not be better. He scored twice, being the second goal a pretty long-distance shot. Pedrinho closed the match in the 3-1 match. Santos keeps moving up. Figueirense down.

Cruzeiro 1 x 2 São Paulo
São Paulo and Cruzeiro played at the Mineirão a match that could place the winner on the second spot. São Paulo had the best defense and the worst attack, and Cruzeiro the best attack and the worst defense. In the first-half, the match was tough and physical, with little space for skills. Cruzeiro was slightly better, and the best attack imposed its force on the best defense. After a free-kick, Leandro Domingues with a header opened the score-board.

For the second-half, São Paulo woke up and gained the midfield. Breno, a 17 year-old defender, tied the match in a goal very similar to Cruzeiro’s. Breno is someone to watch. Remember: you heard about him here first.

Araújo and Roni did not play a good match, and were replaced. Coach Dorival Jr. was booed when he replaced the latter. São Paulo waited for Cruzeiro on its defense, and used the counter-attack. In one of them, Hernanes, another young player starting his career at São Paulo, scored a wonderful goal. He received the ball in the midfield, dribbled one player with a Robinho-alike move, passed a second player with a similar move, and fired it from outside the box.

The comeback could’ve been a draw if the ref. had given a penalty to Cruzeiro with 5 minutes left. End of the match, São Paulo moves to the second spot and Cruzeiro falls to the nineth.

Relegation and the Big Clubs

Juventude escaped for the moment the relegation zone by beating Inter, 2-0. América-RN decided to win to make things even more complicated in the bottom part of the table. The club from Natal beat by 2-1 the other Atlético, the one from Paraná. The other fading Atlético.

With this, the two clubs with more fans in Brazil are in the relegation zone. Corinthians, in the midst of its worst crisis ever, was defeated in São Paulo by Naútico by a large difference, 3-0. The defense made many mistakes and concede goals that reflect the chaotic situation of the club. This was the 7th match of the Timão without a victory, and coach Paulo Carpegiane is on a hot seat. He may leave any time soon. The fans protested and marched to the house of President Alberto Dualib to demand his departure.

Flamengo lost again and now stands in the last spot in the table, with only 8 points. The most popular club in Brazil visited Grêmio to be part of one of the worst matches of the entire Brazilian season. There were punches, kicks and no football. To close the ugly match, the only goal was an own-goal by Flamengo’s defender Irineu. Can anybody save Flamengo?

goals: http://video.globo.com/Videos/Player/Esportes/0,,GIM704889-7824-ASSISTA+AOS+GOLS+DA+RODADA+DO+BRASILEIRAO,00.html