Such pressing was not going to be
possible in the heat, and so they brought
in an extra midfielder. The result was an
inevitable stalemate. Under Portuguese
coach Abel Ferreira, Palmeiras are
essentially reactive, defending close to
goal and leaving centre-forward Luiz
Adriano isolated. They would bide their
time, sitting deep, controlling the Santos
wingers Marinho and Yeferson Soteldo.
Their financial strength translates into a
deep squad. With plenty more options
on the bench, Palmeiras had the air of
being happy to take the game into extra
time; the longer the match went on, they
seemed to be thinking, the greater the
chance of their strength in depth tipping
the balance.
After the 70-minute mark, Cuca
made his move. He made his change,
reverting to his usual front four, and
suddenly Santos found some attacking
fluidity. Seeing the space open up,
Ferreira introduced Breno Lopes.
At first it looked as if the Santos
substitution would have more effect.
But in stoppage time, two things
happened. First, Santos suffered injuries.
Centre-forward Kaio Jorge had to be
replaced, along with attacking left-back
FelipeJonathan, who had just gone
closest to breaking the deadlock. On
came two defenders, and the Santos
momentum was gone.
And then Cuca got involved in a silly
fracas on the touchline, grabbing the
ball in an attempt to prevent a quick
Palmeiras throw. It set off a jostling
session – after which Cuca was sent
off and, crucially, his team lost
concentration.
New left-back Wellington stood too
far off Rony as he shaped to cross deep
on the right. With a lovely curve the ball
took out both centre-backs, and there
was Breno Lopes jumping against the
much smaller right-back Para, winning
the title for his team and allowing
Palmeiras to celebrate like it was1999
- the only previous occasion they had
won the trophy.
A global audience – the match was
though, Palmeiras could catch their
breath and prepare for an all-Brazilian
final.
There was consolation for Argentina
in the Copa Sudamericana. True, it is
very much a second string competition.
But the all-Argentine final, staged in
Cordoba, was a much more attractive
affair, with a convincing winner.
Lanus had the bigger-name players- such as 40-year-old centre-forward
Jose Sand and teenage attacking
midfielder Pedro De La Vega. But
Defensa yJusticia, their neighbours from
the southern suburbs of Buenos Aires,
carried the day with excellent team play.
Only in the first division since 2014,
Defensa yJusticia stand out because
they have developed
a strong identity – a
back-three formation
which seeks to
outnumber the
opposition in midfield.
Players are easily
slotted into the
system, and the club has proved an
effective launching pad for a number
of promising coaching careers – now
including Hernan Crespo, who guided
them to their first major trophy.
Crespo took over early in 2020 when
his predecessor resigned in protest at
player sales. His team did him proud in a
one-sided final where Defensa yJusticia
dominated midfield and had Lanus
running after the ball. Crespo’s men were
good value for their 3-0 win, the goals
coming from defender Adonis Frias in
the first half, striker Braian Romero in
the second, and Uruguayan substitute
Washington Camacho right at the end.
With some of the players on loan from
River Plate, the club where Crespo made
his name, it might be hard for Defensa y
Justicia to hold on to this group for the
coming Copa Libertadores campaign.
And it might also be hard for them to
hold on to their coach.
screened to191
countries – might
have had more to
celebrate had Palmeiras not managed to
squeeze past River Plate of Argentina in
the semi-finals.
In the first leg in Buenos Aires
everything went to perfection for Abel
Ferreira. Keeper Weverton transmitted
security, Paraguay centre-back Gustavo
Gomez organised the defence with his
customary efficiency, and Palmeiras
waited for River Plate’s attack-minded
side to self-destruct at the back. Rony
was gifted a first-half goal, Luiz Adriano
added a fine second, turning on the
halfway line and racing away to score,
and after a rattled River hadJorge
Carrascal sent off, Uruguayan left-back
Matias Vina glanced in a header to seal
a 3-0 away win.But it was not all over. Back in
Sao Paulo, Ferreira made the mistake
of going with the same formation – a
line-up that emphatically stated that
he was not interested in possession.
So Marcelo Gallardo’s River had the
ball, and used it to weave patterns
dangerously close to the Palmeiras goal.
By half-time River had pulled two goals
back. After the break only VAR stopped
them doing more. A goal was ruled out
for a narrow offside, a penalty was
overturned, and even after once more
being reduced to ten men River kept
coming. Right at the end the referee got
off the hook when, as he contemplated
another penalty decision, an earlier
offside was discovered. On the balance
of play there was little doubt that River
deserved to go through. Even in the
heat, a game featuring Gallardo’s River
would surely have made for a better
spectacle in the Maracana. Instead,WORLD SERVICECopa Sudamericana...
Defensa y Justicia
celebrate after
defeating LanusThere was Breno Lopes...winning the title for
his team and allowing Palmeiras to celebrate
like it was 1999 – the only previous occasion
they had won the trophySkipper...ex-Juventus
and Internazionale
midfielder Felipe Melo