Independente boss shrugs off exit, hits Rafinha: “Always 45 points”

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·16 September 2026

Independente boss shrugs off exit, hits Rafinha: “Always 45 points”

The main leader of Independente, São Paulo’s main organized supporters’ group, Henrique Gomes, known as Baby, downplayed the club’s elimination by Boca Juniors in the Copa Sudamericana quarterfinals last Tuesday (16). He also took a swipe at Tricolor football manager Rafinha.

In a post on his social media, Baby was blunt and said that former São Paulo coach Hernán Crespo was right when he said the club’s goal for the year “would be to secure 45 points” to avoid relegation. Those remarks, made at a time when Tricolor were leading the Brazilian Championship, irritated the board and ended up leading to the Argentine manager’s dismissal.

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According to Baby, however, Crespo “was right.” “Pick up the pieces and go after the 45 points. Maybe many won’t understand, they’ll feel offended, but the most important game of the year is Saturday’s one, a direct clash against Internacional,” he wrote.

“Our reality in 2026 was never to compete for titles. Crespo was right,” he added.

Baby also admitted that the supporters eased off on protests against the players in recent months because they believed it was better to support the team during a difficult moment on and off the pitch.

In a tone of frustration, the supporters’ group leader acknowledged that “just running” on the pitch “is not enough” and stressed that São Paulo will need “top-level” reinforcements if they want to compete for trophies again.

“We didn’t go to extremes with the players because we understand that fighting spirit on the pitch does not always outweigh technique. Just running is not enough. We need to sign top-level players if we want to dream of titles again,” he concluded.

The main highlights of the statement and São Paulo’s current situation are:

45-point target: By agreeing with Hernán Crespo’s remark — which at the time caused internal friction — the supporters publicly validate that the absolute focus has now become staying in Série A.
Narrow margin in the table: With 33 points in 13th place, Tricolor are only five points above the relegation zone, which makes Saturday’s match against Internacional a crucial direct battle.
End of unconditional support: The organized supporters signaled that their tone toward the squad may change, acknowledging that “fighting spirit and running” alone do not make up for technical limitations and the lack of top-quality options in the squad.

With the loss of the Sul-Americana’s multimillion prize money and the political fallout from recent decisions, the pressure on the club is now focused entirely on stopping the slide in the Brasileirão and reaching the safety mark as soon as possible. São Paulo are in 13th place, with 33 points so far. The gap to Vasco, who currently sit just inside the relegation zone, is five points.

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