São Paulo go into Sunday’s derby against Palmeiras, at MorumBis, in the penultimate round of the first phase of the Campeonato Paulista. The victory in the last match not only ended a negative run, but also allowed the team to rediscover two players. Calleri will be absent for the Choque-Rei.
Although it took a while to build up a victory against Inter de Limeira, coach Thiago Carpini’s formation was able to exploit the quality of two players who had been lacking: Ferreirinha, who started the match in Brasilia, and James Rodríguez, who came on in the second half and gave the team new mobility.
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Good morning, Tricolor fans!
Check out the goals of Ferreirinha, Luciano and James in the 3⃣ to 0⃣ victory over Inter de Limeira yesterday, through the lenses of #SPFCplay!#VamosSãoPaulo
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– São Paulo FC (@SaoPauloFC) February 29, 2024
Ferreirinha, who arrived surrounded by expectations at the start of the year from Grêmio, scored his first goal in 11 games for the Tricolor. What’s more, when he alternated his attacking position between the left and right sides of the pitch, he confused the opposition defense and created good chances.
In addition to the striker, James was another who shone. The Colombian, who went back on his decision to leave the club and made his debut this season, showed all his ability to leave his teammates free to score (he gave a pass that served as an assist for Luciano to score) and even scored his own. It was his 15th game with São Paulo, with two goals to his name.
“[James] is a technical reference point for us. He was able to take part in today’s match even though he missed part of the preparation and pre-season. The important thing is that he stayed and his performance was very satisfactory,” said the coach in the post-match interview that ended a three-game losing streak.
The bad news for the coach’s plans was Calleri’s third yellow card. The striker, who is a key figure in the attack and who usually has good duels against Palmeiras, will be a definite absentee.
Even if he changes the face of the team, Luciano could take the striker’s place, as the number 10 started on the bench. Lucas, Ferreirinha and Wellington Rato were the starters, along with Calleri. Center forward Juan is also an option.
“It’s a big loss [Calleri out of the derby], but I try not to regret it. Someone else will get the chance. I still don’t know what we’re going to do, we’ll think about it. We know our opponents well and they know us too,” said Carpini.
