Perfect round for Corinthians: back in the lead!
Timo defeats Atlético-GO 3-0 at Pacaembu and regains the lead in the Brazilian Championship, on the day of Adriano's debut; Vasco loses the lead with a 3-0 defeat to Internacional.
To cap off a perfect round for Corinthians, which ended with the team in sole possession of first place in the Brasileirão, only a convincing 3-0 victory over Atlético-GO on Sunday night at Pacaembu would do. The Corinthians fans' celebration, who had already celebrated defeats for Vasco, Botafogo, and São Paulo, direct title contenders, was complete when Adriano entered the field in the 34th minute of the second half for a brief debut in the black and white jersey. The striker had a chance to end a 17-month goal drought, but couldn't reach Ramírez's precise pass.
The victory took Corinthians to 51 points, one more than Vasco, who lost to Inter at Beira-Rio. São Paulo and Flamengo follow with 47 points, and Botafogo with 46 and one game less. Atlético-GO dropped one position to 12th, with 38 points.
In his first game since January, when he participated in a Roma match against Lazio in the Italian Cup, Adriano barely touched the ball. Tite had stated that he hoped he wouldn't need to give the striker his debut, who claims to be at only 20% of his physical condition, but ended up succumbing to the insistent requests of the fans who filled the Pacaembu stadium with more than 36 people.
In the 29th and next round, on Wednesday, Corinthians will host Botafogo, once again at Pacaembu, at 21:50 PM. Atlético-GO will travel to Florianópolis to visit Avaí, but that game is on the afternoon of the holiday, at 16 PM.
THE GAME - If, before the game, Corinthians' biggest problem was in attack (without Liedson, injured, and Emerson, suspended), once the ball started rolling, that was quickly solved. Just 8 minutes in, Fábio Santos crossed from the left and found Danilo unmarked in the middle of the area. The midfielder headed the ball and hit the crossbar. In the ensuing play, a corner was awarded to Corinthians. Alex took the corner and this time Leandro Castán was unmarked, rising high to open the scoring.
Corinthians were far superior, but it took them almost half an hour to score their second goal. After Atlético-GO's defense made a mistake, the ball fell to Willian, who, from outside the area, hit a precise shot into the top right corner of Márcio's goal.
Another defensive lapse by Goiás led to Corinthians' third goal. The defense made a mistake playing out from the back, Danilo stole the ball and passed to Alex. The former Internacional player received the ball in the box, shot with his right foot – his weaker foot – but scored a beautiful goal.
Largely dominated in the first half, coach Hélio dos Anjos tried to correct the team at halftime, making two substitutions. He replaced Rafael Cruz, who was poor in marking, with Joílson, and the midfielder Agenor, who already had a yellow card, with the attacking midfielder Vítor Júnior. Due to Corinthians' comfortable lead, the Goiás team improved their game, taking several shots on goal, but only troubled Júlio César with a shot from Anselmo in the 13th minute.
When they managed to regain control of the game, Corinthians slowed things down. The match remained uneventful until Adriano was called upon to enter the game. The fans ecstatic for almost ten minutes before he came onto the pitch in the 34th minute, replacing Alex.
Despite being heavily involved in the game, Adriano had little participation, but he did have a chance to score. Ramírez, another player returning from injury – he had been sidelined since June – found himself one-on-one with the goalkeeper, but passed the ball to the striker, who then scored. Adriano couldn't reach the ball and was dispossessed in the final play of the game.
CREDITS:
Corinthians 3 x 0 Atlético-GO
Corinthians - Julio Cesar; Alessandro, Paulo André, Leandro Castán and Fábio Santos; Moradei, Paulinho, Danilo and Alex (Adriano); Willian (Edenílson) and Jorge Henrique (Ramírez). Coach - Tite.
Atlético-GO - Márcio; Rafael Cruz (Joílson), Leonardo, Anderson and Thiago Feltri; Agenor (Vitor Júnior), Marino, Ernandes and Bida; Anselmo and Felipe (Diogo Campos). Coach - Hélio dos Anjos.
Goals - Leandro Castán, at 9 minutes, Willian, at 37 minutes, and Alex, at 42 minutes of the first half.
Referee - Jean Pierre Gonçalves Lima (RS).
Yellow cards - Jorge Henrique, Leonardo, Agenor and Rafael Cruz.
Income - R$ 1.221.980,00.
Attendance - 33.609 paying spectators.
Location - Pacaembu Stadium, in São Paulo.