Author – Amrit Santlani
The second leg of the third round of the Copa do Brasil kicked off on Wednesday with Athletico Paranaense, São Paulo, Cruzeiro and Fluminense in action. In the first game of the evening, Cruzeiro hosted Náutico, needing to overturn a 0-1 deficit from the first leg. William and Richard scored to help the hosts win 2-0. Fluminense had already taken a 3-0 lead over Paysandu in the first leg, and went on to win comfortably 3-0 in the second leg. Athletico Paranaense beat CRB 4-2 on penalties after overturning a 0-1 deficit in the first leg, and went on to win 2-1 to take the match to penalty kicks, while São Paulo recorded a 1-0 victory over Ituano.
Cruzeiro – Náutico (0-1, 2-0)
Cruzeiro knew they had a 1-0 deficit to turn around and so they started the match in front against Náutico, but were held back by Vagner. Gilberto had a glorious chance to score, after taking advantage of a mistake by the opposing defender and even getting around Vagner, but he couldn’t hit the back of the net. Vagner was again on hand to thwart Gilberto with a brilliant save just before half-time. A brilliant move between Bruno Rodrigues and Gilberto at the start of the second half brought the ball to William’s feet, who shot into the empty net. Vagner made several important saves in the second half, Gilberto missed a glorious headed chance and Luciano Castan also fired over the crossbar after Vagner’s mistake. Richard’s header, however, decided the game after William’s assist.
Paysandu – Fluminense (0-3, 0-3)
Fluminense traveled to Edgar Augusto Proença with a 3-0 lead, and it took just three minutes for German Cano to open the scoring, giving his team a 4-0 lead. Keno made it 2-0 on the night with an admirable shot from outside the area that completely deceived Rodrigues Coelho. John Kennedy’s sensational move, to get past the Paysandu defenders and finish to beat the goalkeeper, was the perfect icing on the cake!
Atlético Paranaense – Regatas (0-1, 2-1, penalty 4:2)
CRB already had a slender 1-0 lead from the first leg, and started the second leg on the front foot too. Anselmo Ramon scored in the eighth minute, but Athletico made a remarkable comeback in the second half. Alex Santana was the savior, scoring two goals to take the game to penalties. Fernandinho, David Terans, Pablo and Vitor Bueno scored penalties for Paranaense, while David Silva and Anselmo Ramon missed. João Paulo and Matheus Ribério scored for CRB, but it wasn’t enough to save the team from defeat.
Ituano – São Paulo (0-0, 0-1)
São Paulo and Ituano didn’t break up in the first leg and the two teams also cancelled each other out in the first half of the second leg. Rodrigo Nestor’s shot was saved by Jefferson Paulino, who kept São Paulo at bay despite several attempts from the visitors. The second half was also dominated by São Paulo, and Alisson was once again impeded by Jefferson. It took something special from Wellington Rato to beat Ituano’s goalkeeper in the 63rd minute. Rato cut in on his left foot, skipped past three defenders and fired a shot from outside the area that went straight into the bottom corner. São Paulo should have doubled their lead, but Rato fired his attempt just wide of the goal, and the contest ended 1-0.