Author: Chandra Moulee Das
The match between São Paulo and Vasco da Gama, held at the iconic São Januário Stadium, saw São Paulo assert their dominance in the early stages. However, the team struggled to convert this advantage into attempts on goal.
The crucial moment of the match was a missed penalty by São Paulo’s Wellington Rato, a moment that could have changed the game in their favor. Despite dominating possession, São Paulo lacked depth in their attacks, which allowed Vasco to escape unscathed.
In a press conference after the decisive match of the 26th
of the 26th round of the Brasileirão, the coach of the Tricolor,
Dorival Júnior, mentioned that both teams could have created more chances if they hadn’t misplaced so many passes.
“The game was very intense in the first half, maybe we had to break that initial rhythm, but we tried to create speed and maybe some wasted passes from both teams took away opportunities for some moves, some set pieces, some infiltration moves. I think that in general, as a whole, São Paulo tried to stay organized throughout the match. We didn’t suffer, except for the ball at the start of the second half, which hit our crossbar.”
He added: “What’s more, we tried, we had a few chances. Vasco’s defense was very well positioned. Both teams looked for it. We could have scored goals, even if a draw was the final result. But a draw with goals, because we were behind the whole time. At least it was an enjoyable game to watch, with two teams that tried to do something during the 90 minutes.“
When asked about São Paulo’s focus on the Brasileirão after winning the Copa do Brasil, Dorival Júnior acknowledged the difficulty of shifting focus from one achievement to another competition. However, he believes that his team has overcome this moment.
Now, the coach is looking forward to seeing even more progress so that the Tricolor can secure more points. With 35 points in the table, São Paulo play again next Wednesday against Goiás in Goiânia.