São Paulo and Cruzeiro draw in the Brazilian Championship.

In a six-goal thriller with many missed opportunities, São Paulo and Cruzeiro drew 3-3 on Wednesday night at Arena do Jacaré in Sete Lagoas, in the opening match of the 28th round of the Brasileirão. Dagoberto, with a goal and an assist, was the star of the game, which also featured a missed penalty by Luís Fabiano.

The result kept São Paulo in third place in the standings with 47 points – they could be overtaken by Botafogo during the weekend's round. Cruzeiro, meanwhile, remains threatened by relegation. With 30 points, the Minas Gerais team stays in 16th place, but has no chance of falling into the relegation zone at the end of the round.

Without Lucas, who was with the Brazilian national team, and Casemiro, on the bench, São Paulo relied on Dagoberto's inspiration this Wednesday. The striker scored a goal, provided an assist, and even initiated the play that led to the team's third goal. Luís Fabiano also had an effective participation in the decisive plays, but missed a penalty in his best chance to score since returning to São Paulo.

THE GAME - In contrasting positions in the standings, Cruzeiro and São Paulo had a disjointed start to the game, which only gained fluidity with the home team's goal in the 12th minute. In one of their few dangerous attacks, Montillo advanced down the left and delivered a perfect cross for Keirrison to finish into the net. It was the striker's first goal in a Cruzeiro shirt.

São Paulo's response came from Jean's feet, with a powerful shot from the right. The ball hit the post in the 23rd minute. Lacking inspiration and with a lead, Cruzeiro slowed the pace and began to play more defensively. The São Paulo team took advantage of the space and assumed control of the midfield.

More consistent, it didn't take long for them to accumulate missed chances in attack. The biggest of these was made by the team's star Luís Fabiano, the biggest signing in the club's history. In a penalty kick, the striker was stopped by Fábio, who dived firmly to his left and prevented the equalizing goal.

The penalty resulted from a beautiful individual play by Cícero, who entered the area but feigned a foul by the Cruzeiro goalkeeper. Despite protests from the home team, referee Paulo Godoy Bezerra awarded the penalty, which was ultimately missed by the visitors.

São Paulo missed another good scoring opportunity in the 43rd minute. Dagoberto received a beautiful backheel pass at the edge of the box and shot past Fábio. However, Everton intercepted the play and deflected the ball, which was already heading towards the net.

Under pressure, Cruzeiro only threatened with Everton himself, at 38 minutes. He surged through the middle and fired a powerful shot from outside the box. Rogério Ceni had to stretch to prevent the second goal for the Minas Gerais team.

After wasting several chances in the first half, São Paulo picked up the pace in the second half and showed greater effectiveness in attack. After pinning Cruzeiro back in defense, the visiting team equalized in the 14th minute. Dagoberto started the play, which featured an assist from Luís Fabiano and a finish by Cícero.

Five minutes later, Dagoberto was back at it again, this time with a solo effort. He started from midfield and took advantage of the Cruzeiro defense's carelessness to break into the box and chip the ball over the goalkeeper into the back of the net.

The turnaround, however, did not discourage Cruzeiro. At 26 minutes, Charles took advantage of a rebound from the São Paulo defense, after a free kick into the area, and unleashed a powerful shot to level the score again.

But São Paulo managed to cool down Cruzeiro's enthusiasm in the 31st minute. Dagoberto, once again decisive, crossed into the area and Juan headed into the net: 3-2. Persistent, Cruzeiro didn't give up and sought the equalizer again. Anselmo Ramon, who had just come on, took advantage of a defensive lapse and, unmarked, headed into the goal from close range in the 34th minute, securing a point in the standings.

Both teams will only return to the field next Wednesday. São Paulo will face Internacional in Barueri at 16 PM. Cruzeiro will visit Bahia at 21:50 PM.