Renato Caja gave Botafogo a late win over Sao Paulo

Three-time champions Sao Paulo have yet to win a game after two rounds of the Brazilian championship, this time falling to a 2-1 defeat against Botafogo at the Morumbi stadium. Sao Paulo confronted the match with a side mixed with starters and reserves, as coach Ricardo Gomes gave priority to his team’s Copa Libertadores quarter-finals return leg with Cruzeiro mid-week.

Sao Paulo went ahead with a goal from midfielder Leo Lima in the 8th minute, however, Antonio Carlos — the leading scorer of the league with three goals — drew the visitors level in the 27th minute. When it seemed that the match would end in a draw, Renato Caja appeared in the 88th minute to hand Botafogo the three points.

Like Sao Paulo, Santos have yet to claim a victory in the league, after being held to a 1-1 draw by first division newcomers Ceara. Teenage prodigy Neymar was on target for Santos when he converted a first-half penalty, but he also missed a penalty late in the game. Santos were without a number of key players including Brazilian international Robinho, looking ahead to Wednesday’s Copa do Brasil semi-final second leg with Gremio.

Corinthians lead the competition with their second consecutive victory, this time beating Gremio 2-1 with goals from Ralf and Souza in either half. Maylson pulled a goal back for Gremio with 15 minutes left in the second half, but although the Porto Alegre side pushed for an equaliser, they couldn’t find one.

Former World Footballer of the Year, Ronaldo, missed the match for Corinthians, due to a minor muscle injury, but should be fit to return to action for the club’s next league game.

Cruzeiro rallied from two-goals down in the first half, to force a 2-2 draw with Avai at the Mineirao stadium in Belo Horizonte. Cruzeiro were without several of their starters, due to their upcoming Copa Libertadores quarter-finals second leg fixture with Sao Paulo.

In Sunday’s other matches, Internacional defeated Goias 3-2, Atletico Paranaense fought out a 2-2 draw with Guarani and the clash between Palmeiras and Vasco da Gama ended goalless.

On Saturday Gremio Prudente thumped Atletico Mineiro 4-0, Flamengo drew 1-1 with Vitoria and Fluminense edged first division newcomers Atletico Goianiense 1-0.

Ronaldo's late penalty gave Corinthians the victory

Former World Player of the Year, Ronaldo, scored a late winner in Corinthians’ 2-1 victory over Atletico Paranaense in the opening round of the Campeonato Brasileiro at the Pacaembu stadium in Sao Paulo on Sunday. Corinthians came from a goal behind to beat an Atletico Paranaense side who played the final twenty minutes with only nine-men.

Corinthians, who were eliminated from the Copa Libertadores by Flamengo last week, were looking to get their 2010 Campeonato Brasileiro campaign off to a winning start, but they suffered a set-back right before half-time when Wagner Diniz put the visitors ahead.

However, Corinthians regrouped after the break with Souza drawing them level in the 59th minute with a well-placed curling shot after a fine combination of passes between a number of Corinthians players down the left flank.

Corinthians continued to push forward, and they were awarded a penalty kick in the 83rd minute. Ronaldo stepped up to the spot and made no mistake with a fine finish. Despite scoring twice in his last two games, Ronaldo is unlikely to convince Brazil coach Dunga to include him in his 23-man delegation for the 2010 World Cup.

Even with their early Copa Libertadores exit Corinthians are expected to be contenders for the Brazilian championship this year.

Defending champions Flamengo were held to a 1-1 draw by Sao Paulo at Maracana stadium. Both teams fielded second-rate teams to concentrate on their upcoming Copa Libertadores quarter-final fixtures, but it was still a highly-disputed clash.

Striker Washington put Sao Paulo ahead right before half-time, but Denis Marques earned Flamengo a point with a 50th-minute goal.

At the Beira-Rio stadium, Kleber scored twice to give Cruzeiro a 2-1 win over Internacional. Kleber’s first goal came in the 4th minute with a cheeky penalty-kick while his second goal came in the 35th minute when he meet a good through ball with a clinical finish. Taison scored Inter’s only goal in the 6th minute, with a close-range header.

Both teams also fielded predominantly second-rate sides looking ahead to their mid-week Copa Libertadores matches.

On Saturday, Brazil’s most exciting club, Santos, fought out a thrilling 3-3 draw with Botafogo in Rio de Janeiro. Teenage prodigy Neymar got on the score-sheet, but although Santos went ahead twice a late goal from Argentine striker German Herrera rescued Botafogo a point.

Saturday’s other matches saw Palmeiras defeat Vitoria 1-0 and Atletico GO fight out a goalless draw with Gremio.

The biggest result of the round was Avai’s 6-1 victory over newly-promoted Gremio Prudente. Emerson converted a superb hat-trick to guide the Florianopolis-based side to a crushing win.

In other matches, Atletico Mineiro beat Vasco da Gama 2-1, Ceara edged Fluminense 1-0 and Guarani also won 1-0 against Goias.

Gregory Sica

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Striker Neymar was key as Santos won the Paulista title

Santos won the Paulista state championship for the 18th time on Sunday despite suffering a 3-2 defeat against Santo Andre in a game where they had three players sent off. The two-legged finals series ended in a 5-5 aggregate tie but Santos won the title after having a better overall record when compared to Santo Andre in the first stage of the championship. Santos finished top of the first stage, 10 points ahead of second-placed Santo Andre.

Having won the first leg of the final 3-2 last week, Santos knew that a narrow loss would be enough to consecrate them as champions. They seemed to relax on their advantage and went behind as early as in the first minute when Nunes met a Cicinho cross on the goal-line and shot into an unguarded net.

But teenage prodigy Neymar drew Santos level six minutes later when he latched onto a sublime aerial back-heel from Robinho, before rounding the goalkeeper and a defender and directing the ball home.

Midfielder Ale put Santo Andre ahead again in the 14th minute with a simple header from a corner-kick, but Neymar drew Santos level for the second time in the 31st minute after moving onto another brilliant back-heel — this time from Paulo Henrique Ganso — with a good finish.

But the action continued, as right before the break Branquinho gave Santo Andre the lead for the third time when he fired the ball home after a well-worked collective move.

For the duration of the second half Santo Andre searched for a fourth goal that would have handed them the title — coming closest to finding that goal in the 90th minute when Branquinho struck the woodwork from close-range.

The pro-Santos fans — 36,000 of them — at the Pacaembu stadium celebrated the title win, even if it was with a sour taste in their mouth. Still, Santos will be one of the favourites to win the Brazilian championship, which kicks off in two weeks.

Other champions of their respective cities include: Botafogo (Rio de Janeiro), Gremio (Rio Grande do Sul) and Atletico Mineiro (Minas Gerais).

Gregory Sica

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Midfielder Kaka continues to be Brazil's key weapon

Five-time world champions Brazil have reclaimed top spot from Spain in the FIFA world rankings, returning to No.1 position and ending the five-month reign of the defending European champions.

Portugal, the Netherlands and world champions Italy also find themselves in the top five. Argentina, two-time winners of the World Cup, rose two positions into seventh, while the next best-placed South American team are Chile, despite dropping down two positions to 15th place.

Uruguay, who are also two-time winners of the World Cup, remain in 18th position as was the case last month.

The rest of South America’s teams are in the following positions: Paraguay (30th), Colombia (34th), Ecuador (36th), Venezuela (49th), Peru (53rd) and finally Bolivia (67th).

Gregory Sica

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Legendary Brazilian club Santos are just a step away from claiming their 18th Sao Paulo state championship after beating Santo Andre 3-2 in the first leg of the final at the Pacaembu stadium on Sunday. The Peixe can win the state championship even if they suffer a narrow loss to Santo Andre in the return leg next weekend.

To the devastation of the majority of the fans at the stadium, Santo Andre took a surprise lead in the 34th minute when midfielder Bruno Cesar curled in a left-footed free-kick. But Santos regrouped and after a number of close calls drew level in the 58th minute when Andre nodded the ball home at the back post.

Santos, who won the state title for the last time in 2007, went ahead four minutes after their equaliser when Wesley beat Santo Andre goalkeeper Felipe with a well-placed shot after a quick breakaway.

Moments later Wesley added Santos’ third goal with an identical finish, to the delight of the vocal 35,000 crowd.

But despite being reduced to ten-men in the 75th minute, Rodriguinho pulled a goal back for Santo Andre — a goal that keeps their title chances alive.

Still, Santos are heavily favoured to lift the title next week, not only because of their advantage, but because they have proven to be the strongest team in Brazil so far this year — Santos have scored a staggering 96 goals in 28 matches.

Much of Santos’ success has been down to the impact made by Robinho (on loan to the club from Manchester City) and gifted youngsters Neymar and Paulo Henrique Ganso.

Gremio close-in on title

In Porto Alegre, Gremio upset arch-rivals Internacional 2-0 at the Beira-Rio stadium and are on course to lift the Campeonato Gaucho ahead of the second leg of the final next week. Gremio won the match courtesy of second-half headers from Rodrigo and Borges.

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Botafogo won the Rio de Janeiro state championship, after beating rivals Flamengo 2-1 at Maracana stadium on Sunday. Botafogo, who had already claimed the Guanabara Cup, won the match with two penalty conversions from forwards German Herrera and Sebastian Abreu, from Argentina and Uruguay, respectively.

Since the Vasco da Gama side of 1998, no team had won both the Guanabara Cup and the Rio Cup in the same year. Botafogo proved to be the best team throughout the competition, thanks to the work of key players like Abreu, who only joined the club in January.

Botafogo came into the clash as the hot favourites, and they went ahead in the 21st minute when Herrera converted a penalty kick.

But Flamengo lifted their game towards the end of the half and Vagner Love drew them level on the stroke of half-time when he slotted the ball home from close-range after confusion in the Botafogo area.

However, Abreu put Botafogo back into the lead when he scored from the penalty spot. His tricky chip went in off the crossbar, in reminiscence of Zinedine Zidanes’s penalty kick in the final of the 2006 World Cup.

Adriano had the opportunity to draw Flamengo level when they were awarded a penalty of their own three minutes later, but his effort was saved by Botafogo goalkeeper Jefferson.

Santos cruise past Sao Paulo

Santos reached the final of the Sao Paulo state championship after thrashing Sao Paulo 3-0 at the Vila Belmiro stadium. The Peixe had already won the first leg of the semi-final 3-2 last week.

Attacker Neymar opened the scoring for Santos with a close-range effort in the 59th minute and the 18-year-old converted his second goal from the penalty spot in the 83rd minute.

Midfielder Paulo Henrique Ganso added Santos’ third goal three minutes from full-time, to seal a comprehensive victory.

Santos will meet Santo Andre in the final of the competition, and will be looking for their first title triumph since 2007.

Gregory Sica

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Legendary Brazilian club Santos beat Sao Paulo 3-2 in the first leg of the Sao Paulo State championship semi-finals in front of almost 40,000 fans at the Morumbi stadium on Sunday. The Peixe only need a point from the return leg at the Vila Belmiro next weekend to reach the grand final of the tournament, the most important of Brazil’s regional competitions.

In the other semi-final, Santo Andre came from behind to defeat Gremio Prudente at the Eduardo Jose Farah stadium. Santo Andre are also just a point away from the decider.

Durval snatched Santos the victory in the 90th minute when he beat Rogerio Ceni with a close-range header from a free-kick. Santos went into the break with a two-goal advantage after goals from striker Andre and an own goal from Sao Paulo’s Cesar.

Despite having Marlos sent off, Sao Paulo picked up their game in the second half and drew level with goals from key players Hernanes and Dagoberto.

But Santos withstood the setback and regrouped towards the end of the match and were rewarded for their attitude by claiming a dramatic victory when Durval headed home a free-kick executed by midfielder Madson.

Santos, who were reinforced by Brazilian international Robinho this season, are on course to win their first Sao Paulo State championship since 2007.

Vagner Love guides Flamengo

In the Rio de Janeiro State championship, Flamengo edged Vasco da Gama 2-1 with a goal in each half from striker Vagner Love. Flamengo now need to beat Botafogo in Sunday’s Rio Cup final to reach the grand final of the tournament, where they will meet Botafogo again, the winners of the Guanabara Cup.

Botafogo secured their place in the final after a 3-2 win over Fluminense also at Maracana stadium on Saturday.

Gregory Sica

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According to Corinthians left-back Roberto Carlos French striker David Trezeguet wants to leave Juventus for the Timao. Corinthians are one of the main contenders to win the 2010 Copa Libertadores this year after having been reinforced with heaps of quality, including that of Carlos, Ronaldo, Edu, Iarley and Danilo.

Roberto Carlos affirmed to the press that he received a phone call from one of Trezeguet´s friends last week, where he was informed about Trezeguet´s desire to join Corinthians.

“Last week I received a phone call from a friend from France, who is a very good friend of Trezeguet, and he told me that David is willing to play for Corinthians,” Roberto Carlos told Lance.

Trezeguet, 32, has scored seven goals for Juventus in Serie A this season, but he hasn´t been able to find himself a permanent position in the team´s starting XI. The striker is keen on a return to South America and is looking to attract the attention of a big club.

“A French player called Trezeguet wants to play for Corinthians. They tell me he doesn´t speak of any other club, he speaks of Corinthians,” concluded Carlos, who in December signed for Corinthians.

Trezeguet, who lifted the World Cup with France in 1998, started his career with Argentine side Platense in 1993. In recent months he has also been targeted by Argentine giants Boca Juniors and River Plate.

Gregory Sica

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Brazilian superstar Ronaldo was on target as Corinthians defeated Ituano 2-0 at the Teixeirao stadium on Sunday, a result that keeps the Timao in contention for a semi-finals berth in the Paulista State championship. Corinthians struggled to break down Ituano, but they managed two goals in the final ten minutes of the match that allowed them to claim a crucial victory.

After a slow start, where they failed to find their best form, Corinthians won the game with goals from Jucilei and Ronaldo. Midfielder Jucilei put Corinthians ahead with ten minutes remaining in the second half with a fine header.

Ronaldo sealed the result for Corinthians in the 86th minute by connecting to a Tcheco pass with a simple finish. The striker continued his impressive scoring form, after scoring one of Corinthians´ two goals as they beat Cerro Porteno in the Copa Libertadores on Thursday. Ronaldo scored the only goal of the match when the teams met in Paraguay.

Despite the win, Corinthians still find themselves in fifth place and outside of the qualification zone. The top four teams qualify for the semi-finals.

Fourth-placed Sao Paulo hammered Botafogo 5-0 at the Morumbi stadium. Midfielder Hernanes scored twice to lead his team to victory. Goalkeeper Rogerio Ceni failed to convert a penalty kick when the teams were tied at 0-0.

Brazilian international Robinho scored a goal as league leaders Santos beat Sao Caetano 3-1 in Sao Caetano do Sul.

In other matches, Palmeiras drew 0-0 with Oeste, Gremio Prudente edged Bragantino 3-2 and the clash between Santo Andre and Rio Claro finished 1-1.

Gregory Sica

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On the day of the death of Armando Nogueira, one of their most illustrious fans, Botafogo thrashed Boavista 4-1 at the Sao Januario stadium to confirm their qualification to the semi-finals of the Taca Rio in first place of Group 2. Uruguayan striker Sebastian Abreu converted a superb hat-trick to guarantee Botafogo of a place in the second round of the Carioca championship.

Abreu, who will represent Uruguay in the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, put Botafogo ahead in the 8th minute, to take his side into the break with a slender advantage.

The tall striker then turned provider for Marcelo Cordeiro, who doubled Botafogo´s advantage nine minutes into the second half.

Abreu added two further goals for Botafogo in the final eleven minutes of the match, after one of his best performances since joining the Brazilian club. Earlier in the half Abreu had a legitimate goal ruled out by match referee Joao Batista de Arruda.

Tony scored a consolation goal for Boavista in second half injury-time.

With nine goals, Abreu is the third top scorer of the Rio de Janeiro tournament. Vagner Love tops the scoring charts with twelve goals, one more than Flamengo attacking partner Adriano, with eleven.

Petkovic to extend Flamengo stay?

Directors of Flamengo will reunite with Serbian midfielder Dejan Petkovic and his agent on Tuesday in an attempt to renovate his contract, which expires in May. Petkovic has seen better times at Flamengo and he has refused to speak to the press about the situation. He has recently lost his place in the Flamengo first team and isn´t too happy with coach Andrade´s decision making.

Petkovic, 37, has received interest from former club and Flamengo´s crosstown rivals Fluminense, and according to reports will also reunite with the club along with his agent.

Gregory Sica

Southamericanfutbol.com