Analysis: drop in intensity and costly mistakes see Palmeiras lose top spot | OneFootball

Analysis: drop in intensity and costly mistakes see Palmeiras lose top spot | OneFootball

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Icon: Gazeta Esportiva.com

Gazeta Esportiva.com

·13 March 2026

Analysis: drop in intensity and costly mistakes see Palmeiras lose top spot

Article image:Analysis: drop in intensity and costly mistakes see Palmeiras lose top spot

Palmeiras suffered its first defeat in the Brazilian Championship on Wednesday night, being beaten by Vasco 2-1, after a comeback, at São Januário Stadium. Still “hungover” from winning the Paulista Championship title, the Verdão team switched off when they couldn’t afford to and returned to São Paulo empty-handed.

With three new absences compared to the last match, Palmeiras made some changes to the starting lineup: Bruno Fuchs, Jefté, Felipe Anderson, and Ramón Sosa came in for Murilo, Piquerez, Mauricio, and Vitor Roque. Jhon Arias remained a starter.


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Without playing in the Brasileirão since February 25, Verdão had, in that period, three decisive matches in the Paulistão: a semifinal against São Paulo and the two finals against Novorizontino. And, since the match against Capivariano, Abel Ferreira has been maintaining the same core of the team, only making occasional changes when necessary.

In the last two matches, the team also had to deal with heavy pitches in Novo Horizonte and Rio de Janeiro. Right from the start of the match against Vasco, the team’s fatigue was evident. Verdão couldn’t create faster plays or properly connect in attack. The team even reached the offensive third, but without success in the final pass. Once Vasco tightened their marking, things got even harder.

At the 39th minute of the first half, Flaco López received from Marlon Freitas and scored a beautiful goal, leaving Léo Jardim with no chance. But the goal at the end of the first half wasn’t enough to recharge Palmeiras, who came back a bit slower for the second half and struggled with some of Vasco’s attacks.

Carlos Miguel made a good save shortly after Vasco’s first goal, at the 17th minute, which came after Marlon Freitas lost the ball. The defense didn’t keep up and saw the score leveled. Palmeiras tried to hold on for a draw away from home, but it was only a matter of time before Cuiabano received the ball in the box and completed the comeback.

Palmeiras’ Situation

With this result, Palmeiras suffered its first defeat in the Brasileirão and lost the top spot in the competition to São Paulo, who reached 13 points. With ten, Abel Ferreira’s team dropped to second place. Now, they have three wins, one draw, and one loss.

Next match

  • Match: Palmeiras vs. Mirassol
  • Competition: Brazilian Championship (6th round)
  • Date and time: March 15, 2026 (Sunday), at 6:30 p.m. (Brasília time)
  • Venue: Allianz Parque, in São Paulo (SP)

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

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