Later today, Palmeiras play Santos for the 11th round of the Brazilian Championship. In the first ten matches, Palmeiras accumulated 22 points, with seven victories, one draw and two losses.
The campaign until now is Palmeiras’ third best after ten games in the history of the Brasileirão under the current format. In 2016 Palmeiras also had 22 points but the goal difference was better than this year’s (11 vs 8), and in the outstanding start in 2019, Palmeiras had 26 points after ten games.
Walking away with three points against Santos would take Palmeiras to 25 points, surpassing 2016’s campaign and come second only to the extraordinary year of 2019 (26 points after eleven games). Palmeiras’ performance gets better when compared to teams initially pointed out as title contenders: Flamengo started very irregular, Grêmio and São Paulo are more preoccupied with the relegation zone than fighting for the title. The current contenders are the surprises Athletico Paranaense and Red Bull Bragantino, and the starred team of Atlético Mineiro, possibly our biggest threat this year.
Palmeiras have scored eighteen goals and conceded ten in the Brasileirão 2021. One third of Palmeiras’ goals were scored in the first 15 minutes of game and other five goals were scored in the last 15. Palmeiras have scored in every round but the opening round and the defensive problems seem finally to have been fixed, with two consecutive clean sheets in the last two games in the tournament.
Palmeiras have improved the football displayed in the last few rounds and the four consecutive victories propelled the team to a momentary lead. The performance of the last game, with Gómez and Viña back to the defensive line, was much more secure, and when Dudu makes his re-debut, the team will surely increase in firepower, also taking the good momentum of Scarpa and Raphael Veiga into account. It’s very early still, but the path for the 11th Brasileirão title is being built.
Scoppia che la vittoria è nostra!
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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 