It’s the lads: Cruzeiro beat São Paulo to win second Copa São Paulo | OneFootball

Cruzeiro are two-time champions of the Copa São Paulo de Futebol Júnior! On the morning of this Sunday (25), the celestial team defeated São Paulo 2-1 at the Arena Mercado Livre Pacaembu, securing their second title in the country’s main youth competition. The final was marked by intensity, physical battles, and efficiency in the decisive moments of the match.

MATCH SUMMARY

From the opening minutes, Cruzeiro showed an aggressive stance and controlled the play. The early pressure translated into a lead on the scoreboard at 11 minutes into the first half. From a corner kick, Baptistella sent the ball to the far post, it went past goalkeeper João Pedro and found William unmarked in the box, who simply tapped it in.

After conceding the goal, São Paulo tried to reorganize and began pushing their lines higher, mainly attacking down the right flank. The São Paulo side managed to balance the game at times and created chances, such as Tetê’s shot. The match grew in intensity, with strong tackles and a heated atmosphere on the pitch. Cruzeiro could have extended their lead on dangerous counterattacks, but goalkeeper João Pedro made good saves.In stoppage time of the first half, São Paulo found the equalizer. From a corner delivered into the box, the ball fell to Gustavo Santana, who flicked it on, and Isac appeared in the six-yard box to finish and level the score before halftime.

In the second half, Cruzeiro again faced difficulties against the opponent’s marking, but maintained consistency and kept pushing forward. At the 28th minute, their persistence paid off. Gustavinho took a long-range shot, the ball crashed off the post and, on the rebound, hit the back of goalkeeper João Pedro before going in, putting Raposa back in front.

Shortly after, São Paulo had another chance to respond. Kaiquy Luiz committed a foul in a play that led to São Paulo’s claims for a penalty. After review, the referee determined the infraction occurred outside the box, and the resulting free kick did not lead to a goal.

In the final minutes, the São Paulo team threw themselves forward in search of an equalizer, while Cruzeiro adopted a more cautious approach, with compact lines and counterattacks. The celestial defense looked solid, neutralized the opposition’s advances, and held the result until the final whistle.

With the title within reach, the Cruzeiro fans present at Pacaembu were already celebrating, singing chants even before the end of the match. In the end, the victory confirmed Cruzeiro’s consistent campaign in the competition and secured another important chapter in the history of their youth academy, winning the championship for the second time, once again over São Paulo, just as they did in 2007, when they claimed their first title in the tournament.

Match details:

Lineups

São Paulo – Coach: Allan BarcellosJoão Pedro; Igor Felisberto, Isac, Osorio and Nicolas (Guilherme Reis); Matheus Ferreira, Djhordney, Tetê and Pedro Ferreira; Gustavo Santana (Lucyan) and Paulinho.

Cruzeiro – Coach: Mairon CesarVitor Lamounier; Nicolas (Ivanilson), Kaiquy Luiz, Kelvin and William (Gustavo); Murilo, Alessandro (André) and Rhuan Gabriel; Rayan (Pablo), Baptistella and Fernando.

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