Andrés Gómez out for Vasco, gets a rest after Colombia marathon | OneFootball

Forward Andrés Gómez received his third yellow card during Vasco’s important win over Grêmio last Sunday and is officially suspended for the next round of the Brazilian Championship. The booking issued by the referee at São Januário rules the Colombian out of the match against Coritiba, scheduled for April 1, but his spell away from the Rio club will not mean immediate rest due to the international commitments scheduled during this break.

The weekend victory took the team coached by Renato Gaúcho to 11 points in the overall standings, consolidating Vasco in ninth place in the national tournament. To maintain their good form and recent unbeaten run, the coaching staff will have to make up for the absence of their most consistent player, who has an impressive average of 83 minutes on the pitch per match and has not missed any of the 17 official fixtures in the current 2026 season.

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Call-up for international friendlies in the United States

The Vasco forward’s break will only come after the end of the FIFA international window, as the right winger’s talent was recognized by coach Néstor Lorenzo, who called him up to represent the Colombia National Team. The player will travel to the United States in the coming days to join the squad competing in the warm-up tournament called Road to 26, facing top-level tests against strong Croatia, on March 26 in Orlando, and France, on March 29 in the capital, Washington.

This participation in the international friendlies means the player will maintain his intense routine of travel and high-performance physical training while the rest of the Vasco squad works calmly in Rio de Janeiro. The suspension in the Brazilian tournament ends up serving as a real forced and highly strategic break for the Colombian, who will return from national team duty worn out and will not need to join the Gigante da Colina delegation for the trip to Paraná.

Expected return for Vasco vs. Botafogo

The timely rest after returning from the international friendlies will allow Vasco’s medical department to focus on the full muscle recovery of their main attacking speedster. The coaching staff’s planning is already aimed at using the player with fully recharged batteries in the tenth round of the competition, which will feature the eagerly awaited Rio derby against Botafogo, scheduled for the first weekend of April at Vasco’s home stadium.

While the undisputed starter serves his automatic suspension and recovers physically from the run of matches with his country, the Vasco coach will test variations in the attacking system during daily training sessions ahead of the clash with the team from Paraná. The intention is to find a tactical alternative capable of replacing the speed and aggression the forward brings down the wings, ensuring that the team maintains the effectiveness needed to go after three more points away from home.

Andrés Gómez returns for the Vasco vs. Botafogo derby – Photo: Matheus Lima/Vasco

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This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.