Cruz blames loss on defensive errors, backs line-up, wants tighter marking | OneFootball

Serving as São Paulo’s interim coach this Saturday (16), in the loss to Fluminense at the Maracanã, in the Brazilian Championship, Milton Cruz had little of substance to say in his post-match press conference.

After all, everyone knows the Morumbi club begins a new chapter on Monday (18), when Dorival Júnior takes charge of the team for the third time in its history.

Even so, there was no hiding the disappointment over the setback, which leaves Tricolor without a win in six straight matches and at real risk of dropping out of the Copa Libertadores qualification zone once the round is completed.

Perhaps because of the temporary nature of his role, Cruz tried to be as direct as possible in his assessment and admitted: São Paulo might have had better luck in the match if not for the defensive mistakes that led to the two goals scored by the Rio side in the first half, which ultimately set the course for the final result.

“If it weren’t for the mistakes we made in the first half, maybe we would have won the game. We had more chances than they did. But football is like that. Sometimes you create and can’t score. They, with two mistakes from us, managed to score both goals,” he said.

Another point that warranted explanation was the lineup chosen for the match. Cruz went with a 4-3-3 featuring an extra full-back on the left, with full-back Wendell playing as a winger. According to him, the tactic worked, as it even surprised the opponent.

“Zubeldía (Luis, Fluminense’s coach, who worked with Cruz at São Paulo) spoke to me on the pitch and said he thought I would come with three center-backs, because in these situations I usually play that way, but I changed the strategy,” he added.

According to him, the large number of absences in that area (Alan Franco and Rafael Tolói are out injured and Arboleda remains unavailable) ended up contributing to his decision not to field three center-backs, his preferred system.

“I always like to think in terms of three center-backs, but it wasn’t possible. Alan and Tolói couldn’t play. The defensive midfielders, Bobadilla and Danielzinho, have already played as holding midfielders. Pablo Maia was tested at the training center and couldn’t come either,” he pointed out.

Cruz also concluded by agreeing that one of São Paulo’s main current problems is the lack of midfield marking. And that he will talk about it with the new coach.

“Dorival will take a good look at whether he can put in one more defensive midfielder; we really need that. Luan came on well today. Today we held up well, apart from the individual mistakes we made. It’s not easy to come to the Maracanã, I think we had possession and matched Fluminense. It was a good strategy, it’s just a shame that we made mistakes on the goals,” he stressed.

With the defeat, São Paulo remains on 24 points. They will go to sleep in fourth place, but depending on the combination of the remaining results in the round, they could end up in sixth.

Now it’s time to think about the new chapter with Dorival in charge. The coach arrives on Monday (18) and makes his debut on Tuesday (19), at 9:30 p.m. (Brasília time), against Millionarios at Morumbi, in the Copa Sudamericana. In the Brasileirão, the next match is against Botafogo, at 5 p.m. (Brasília time) next Saturday (23), also at home.

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