Domingos shrugs off altitude, Iago nails set-pieces: debut numbers | OneFootball

São Paulo had four debuts on Tuesday night (11), when the team drew 1-1 away to Bolívar in the first leg of the Copa Sudamericana tie. Three of them started, while Aurélio Buta came on in the closing minutes in La Paz, Bolivia.

Domingos Duarte and Newton in central defense, along with Iago on the left side as full-back/wing-back, were given a chance for the first time in Dorival Júnior’s starting lineup. Although all of them performed well, two stood out more to the São Paulo fans.

Portuguese rock at the back

In his first match at an extremely high altitude of more than 3,600 meters, Portuguese defender Duarte delivered a great performance. He imposed himself physically, cleared almost everything in his area of defense, and won most of his duels for the ball, committing just one foul in the game.

He had an impressive 15 defensive actions, leading that category alongside Arboleda. He recorded ten clearances, two interceptions, one blocked shot, one tackle, and six recoveries for São Paulo against the Bolivians.

The Portuguese player contested seven duels and won four, completing 15 passes from 21 attempts, with no mistakes that put the team at risk. Domingos Duarte leaves a strong first impression and shows that he can earn a starting spot for Tricolor.

Nice to meet you, waiter

Another player who impressed in his first match for the club was left-back Iago, who arrived from Bahia on loan. He also started and provided the assist for Arboleda’s goal, delivering a perfectly placed cross from a corner kick in the first half.

At times he played as a full-back, at others as an attacking wing-back, and he showed quality going forward. He combined well on several occasions and was heavily involved in crossing, creating dangerous chances. The heat map shows just how active he was offensively in the match in La Paz.

He made 11 passes, completing nine of them, and had one shot attempt, which was blocked, along with 30 touches and one dribble in the 61 minutes the new São Paulo player was on the field.

Defensively, he was solid with two tackles, two clearances, and two blocked shots, in addition to winning three of the four duels he contested for the ball. Iago committed just one foul and was not dribbled past even once by Bolívar’s players.

In “hostile” territory, largely because of the incredible altitude that significantly affects the game, Duarte and Iago gave São Paulo fans hope that the club may truly have signed two good reinforcements for its much-criticized defense.

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