Debuting for the 2020 Brazil Cup, Palmeiras built a great advantage for the second leg of the round-of-16. Playing at Bragança Paulista, Verdão scored three goals already in the first half, counter-attacking to perfection while Red Bull Bragantino enjoyed superiority in numbers related to possession and passing. Raphael Veiga, Wesley and Luiz Adriano were responsible for putting the ball in the back of the net, assisted by Zé Rafael, Felipe Melo and a Bragantino defender respectively.
In the second half, Palmeiras retreated too much and Red Bull found a goal in the final minutes. The 3-1 away is an excellent result, but Palmeiras must not forget there is still 90 minutes of play. Nothing is guaranteed, in particular if Palmeiras next Thursday mimics today’s second half.
Line-up
Weverton; Gabriel Menino, Luan, Gustavo Gómez and Viña; Felipe Melo, Zé Rafael and Raphael Veiga (Lucas Lima); Wesley (Scarpa), Rony (Willian) and Luiz Adriano (Ramires).
Raphael Veiga, Wesley and Felipe Melo received yellow cards.
Green Light
Palmeiras put out a perfect performance in the first half. The effective attacks, with Zé Rafael being a nice support and Felipe Melo distributing from behind, led to superb result playing away. The spot in the quarterfinals will come even with a defeat in the second leg.
Yellow Light
In the second half, it was expected Palmeiras would decrease the rhythm. However, the spaces offered to the opponent were too much, and several scoring opportunities arose; in the end, RB Bragantino only seize one of them, after a terrible pass from Gabriel Menino.
Red Light
Once I said to a friend of mine: “Rony would be a good substitute for Dudu when he has left Palmeiras”. Dudu is gone. Rony has replaced him. And I regret having thought such nonsense every minute Rony is on pitch.
Next Challenge
Palmeiras return their attention to the Brazilian League, with a very tough game against Atlético Mineiro, on Monday 2nd. It’s an opportunity to show strength against an opponent much better than the ones from the three previous victories. Coached by Sampaoli, Palmeiras’ first option before hiring Luxemburgo, Atlético Mineiro are being highly praised for playing an intense football, aligned with best practices seen in Europe.
Scoppia che la vittoria è nostra!
– – – ooo – – –
by Augusto Anteghini Oazi
*Here at Anything Palmeiras, we love football. We love Palmeiras. We are always keen to see Palmeiras play, and keen to write about it for you. But we’re against the return of football in a country that still hasn’t controlled the coronavirus pandemic. We express our deepest sympathy to the families whose loved ones have been taken by the disease.
ANYTHING PALMEIRAS 