Brazilian football club São Paulo defeated Internacional 1-0 at Morumbi on September 19.
Jonathan Calleri’s one penalty-kick goal changed the standings, making the two teams’ battle to remain in the league more clearly defined.
The victory eased the crisis atmosphere around São Paulo, but for Internacional, it was a match that increased the burden of the remaining 10 games.
3-Line Summary
1. São Paulo defeated Internacional 1-0
2. Calleri’s penalty in the 14th minute of the first half was the winning goal
3. The gap remained between 11th-place São Paulo and 18th-place Inter
A Night Changed by Calleri’s Goal in the Silent Stands
The match was played in the 28th round of Brazil’s Série A. São Paulo supporter groups decided to stop cheering for 14 minutes after kickoff as a protest following their elimination from the continental competition. That was why the Morumbi stands were almost silent.
The player who changed the atmosphere first was São Paulo forward Calleri. In the 14th minute of the first half, Luciano fell after being brought down by Maripán in the penalty area and earned a penalty kick, which Calleri placed into the left corner. The goal came about 1 minute before the scheduled silent protest was due to end, and the cheering in the stands resumed after it.
São Paulo substituted Pedro Lima in the second half, while Domingos Duarte was replaced by Sabino after feeling discomfort. Internacional increased its pressure late in the match but could not get past São Paulo goalkeeper Rafael. Attendance that day was 25,395 people—5395 in the source number token without the comma.
What 11th Place with 36 Points and 18th Place with 28 Points Mean
With this victory, São Paulo moved into 11th place with 36 points. Its lead over the relegation zone widened to 8 points. Coming immediately after elimination from the continental competition, the result allowed São Paulo, which must focus on the league, to preserve both its position and its atmosphere.
By contrast, Internacional remained in 18th place with 28 points. 17th-place Grêmio also has 28 points, but Internacional has played 1 more match, while Vasco da Gama, the first team outside the relegation zone, has 31 points. More significant than simply losing 1 match is that the number of matches available to make up ground in the standings has decreased.
The two teams have no official matches scheduled for a short period because of the FIFA international match window. São Paulo will play its postponed league match against Santos on the 2nd of next month, while Internacional will face Corinthians on the 7th of next month.
Criticism of Internacional’s Manager
A column by Brazilian outlet ge strongly criticized Internacional’s performance and manager Paulo Pezzolano’s substitution decisions. This assessment represents the column’s view, but its observation that Internacional needs to win roughly half of its remaining 10 matches shows the standings pressure facing the team.
São Paulo’s problems have not all been resolved by this match alone, either. Still, the one goal and 3 points earned on a day when a silent protest had been planned revealed how different the weight of the result was for the two teams in the same league match.
References
Tags #SãoPaulo #Internacional #SãoPauloInternacional #BrazilianFootball #BrazilianSérieA #BrazilianLeague #Calleri #Morumbi #RelegationZone #LeagueStandings #PauloPezzolano #Corinthians