Author: Soorya G, Serg Atrakhov
Botafogo ended the first half of the Brazilian Championship with another victory, consolidating their position at the top of the table. On Saturday, coach Bruno Lage led his side to a 3-1 victory over Internacional at the Nilton Santos Stadium. With the win, the Albiceleste reached 47 points, leading the Brasileirão standings with a 16-point advantage over second-placed Flamengo – who still have to play on Sunday against São Paulo.
Over the course of 19 games, Fogão have won 82% of the points available, equaling Corinthians in 2017 as the holders of the best record in the first half of the Campeonato Nacional in terms of percentage points won. Impressively, in ten matches played as hosts, the team from Rio de Janeiro came out victorious in all of them. If Bruno Lage’s side win their next four games at the Engenhão, they will set a record in the history of the tournament. They could become the team with the longest winning streak at home. This feat currently belongs to Internacional. In 1976, the team won 13 home games. Botafogo’s next opponents at home are Bahia, Flamengo, Goiás and Atlético-PR.
However, it was Internacional who came out on top at the Nilton Santos Stadium on Saturday. Maurício took advantage of a bizarre mistake by Lucas Perri to open the scoring early on (18 mins). In the 34th minute, Carlos Eduardo could have equalized, but Rochet struck the ball.
In the second half, in just three minutes, the hosts changed the entire course of the match. In the 55th minute, Victor Sa leveled the score and in the 58th minute, Hernandez scored an own goal – 2:1. In the 73rd minute, Luis Enrique made it 3-1. Pedro Enrique’s goal in the 89th minute could have softened Inter’s defeat a little, but the referee disallowed the goal due to an offside position.
On the day the club celebrated its 119th anniversary, it also announced the signing of striker Diego Costa, formerly of European giants Atlético Madrid and Chelsea. The arrival of the experienced 34-year-old striker is intended to fill the gap left by top scorer Tiquinho Soares, who is expected to be out for around five weeks due to a knee injury. Under Bruno Lage, the team will return to action in the Brazilian Championship next Saturday, facing São Paulo at the Morumbi Stadium. Meanwhile, Internacional, still in 12th place with 24 points, will host Fortaleza at the Beira-Rio stadium.