Cruzeiro beats Goiás 5-1 in the first big win of the Brazilian Championship.
In just five minutes of play, Cruzeiro made the most of their home advantage and opened the scoring in the first big win of the 2013 Série A; the visiting team couldn't even manage a consolation goal.
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A cold night, but a heated match at Independência stadium. In the opening game of the 2013 Brazilian Championship between Cruzeiro and Goiás, the Minas Gerais team gave Goiás no chance and earned their first three points in the national league. Newly promoted to the top division, Goiás conceded the first goal early on and lacked the strength to overcome Cruzeiro in Belo Horizonte. Final score: 5-0.
Just five minutes into the game, Cruzeiro made the most of their home advantage and opened the scoring. From a free kick taken by Dagoberto on the left wing, the ball bounced inside the area and fell to Diego Souza, who put it into the back of the net. The midfielder would have a commendable first half, taking responsibility and organizing the plays well. For Goiás, midfielder Hugo was the standout player, with good finishing and ball control.
The better team on the field, Cruzeiro could still have scored a second goal with Borges and Dedé, both headers. Dagoberto scored, but was caught offside. The number 11, however, would still provide the assist for Cruzeiro's second goal. From a corner on the right, the striker put the ball on Bruno Rodrigo's head, who took advantage of Harlei's poor positioning to increase the score. In a similar play, Dagoberto took another corner, this time for Nilton to rise highest and score the third goal.
Even before halftime, Cruzeiro scored their fourth goal. In a good play by Egídio, the full-back escaped his marker and delivered a great pass to Borges, who was unmarked, to enter the area and slot a low shot into the left corner past Harlei. A goal to crown the striker's persistence, who had already been thwarted twice by the Goiás goalkeeper.
Contrary to the good performance, referee Ronan Marques da Rosa did not perform well. On at least two occasions, players from Cruzeiro and Goiás clashed, even exchanging shoves and blows on the field, but no card was shown to any player. The first and only yellow card was only shown in the 32nd minute, to full-back William Matheus.
With the score already high, Cruzeiro eased off in the second half. Visibly, the team slowed the pace of the game and attacked less frequently. Seeking at least to avoid a bigger humiliation, Goiás took more risks in offensive plays, but their actions didn't pose a real threat to Fábio's goal.
Elber and Lucca came on for Diego Souza and Everton Ribeiro, respectively. With the youngsters, the Cruzeiro team gained speed and had more ease in exploiting counter-attacks. Although more organized, Goiás offered spaces on the field.
All it took was a little more pressure to score the fifth goal. In the final ten minutes, Elber won the corner that led to the goal. Lucca took the corner and Nilton, once again, rose well and scored. A resounding victory for Cruzeiro and a guaranteed lead in the first round of the 2013 Brazilian Championship.
MATCH REPORT: CRUZEIRO 5 X 0 GOIÁS
Location: Arena Independência, Belo Horizonte (MG)
Date and Time: May 26, 2013, 6:30 PM (Brasilia Time)
Judge: Ronan Marques da Rosa (SC)
Assistants: Carlos Berkenbrock (SC) and Fabiano da Silva Ramires (ES).
GOALS: Diego Souza, 5' 1st half; Bruno Rodrigo, 30' 1st half; Nilton, 41' 1st half; Borges, 43' 1st half; Nilton, 34' 2nd half
Yellow card: William Matheus (GOI)
Red card: There wasn't one.
CRUZEIRO: Fábio; Ceará, Dedé, Bruno Rodrigo and Egídio; Leandro Guerreiro and Nilton; Everton Ribeiro (Lucca, 20' 2nd half), Diego Souza (Elber, 19' 2nd half), Dagoberto (Ricardo Goulart, 32' 2nd half) and Borges. Coach: Marcelo Oliveira
GOIÁS: Harlei; Vítor, Ernando, Valmir Lucas and William Matheus; Amaral, Thiago Mendes, Renan Oliveira and Hugo (Ramon, half-time); Walter (Júnior Viçosa, 20' 2nd half) and Araújo (Eduardo Sasha, 26' 2nd half). Coach: Enderson Moreira