Half of the Championship is Over in Rio

By: Bruno Romani | February 24th, 2008

Flamengo Champion

Maracanã with 80 thousand chanting fans. You know what that means. It was the match that was going to define the champion of the first-half of Rio’s state championship! Flamengo and Botafogo were in action. The two sides fought a lot. Wellington Paulista opened the score for Botafogo in a moment he took to dribble whoever decided to show up on his way. The second-half came and the referee could see through the intense rain a foul inside Botafogo’s penalty area. There was a lot of discussion before and after Ibson took the penalty to tie the match. The big mob formed inside the area after the goal resulted in a red card for Flamengo’s Souza and Botafogo’s Zé Carlos. Minutes later, Botafogo lost another man. Lúcio Flávio made a fault and was ejected. Botafogo resisted for long minutes and waited for the penalties. But with 1 minute into the stoppage time, Diego Tardelli executed a brilliant shot, driving Flamengo fans crazy. It was the comeback! Botafogo almost tied, hitting the post, but it was too late. The owner of the first-half of the championship wears red and black. After the match, Botafogo’s president Bebeto de Freitas complained about the referee and decided to leave office.

São Paulo

Corinthians/Acosta

In São Paulo, 3 small clubs against 1 big one are in the top 4. Guaratinguetá (24 pts), Ponte Preta (22 pts) and Grêmio Barueri (20 pts) are above Corinthians, who beat Ponte this Sunday with a single goal by Acosta. The most hyped clubs in the state, São Paulo and Palmeiras, are a big disappointment so far. The former is in fifth and just tied this Sunday against Noroeste in 2 goals. The latter tied in one goal on Saturday against Rio Preto. Santos still finds itself low in the table, but this Sunday gave some hope. The club, with just 10 players, beat Ituano 4-1. Colombian Molina scored his first goal for the white team.

Minas Gerais

In Minas, the big clubs are after Tupi, the leader with 13 points. Cruzeiro has 12 points and Atlético 9. The blue team beat Villa Nova, 3-2, and Atlético visited Uberaba to win 1-0.

Rio Grande do Sul

Grêmio and Inter lead their groups. This Sunday, Grêmio visited Esportivo and won 2-1. Inter, conducted by Alex, beat São Luiz 3-0 in Porto Alegre.