Negrucci and Luiz Gustavo shine, São Paulo's defence solid | OneFootball

Against all odds, São Paulo defeated Fortaleza away from home on Thursday (2), playing with one man down for over 70 minutes after Rigoni was sent off. And one of the highlights for the tricolor team was the solid and secure performance of the defense.

And here, all the praise is well deserved. Without four players in the position, either suspended or injured, coach Hernán Crespo had to improvise to keep three options in the back line. He fielded midfielders Luiz Gustavo and Negrucci.

This isn’t something unfamiliar to the tricolores, let’s be honest. Since Crespo returned to Tricolor in June, the talk was that the coach would play Luiz Gustavo in defense, as the veteran had done recently in Europe and also in the Arab world.

Moreover, Negrucci was one of the options that started being trained as a defender due to the squad’s shortages in the area. He got his opportunity in the derby against Santos. It wasn’t all bad and he seems to have convinced.

Well, against Fortaleza, both stood out. Luiz Gustavo took the field for the first time since recovering from a pulmonary thromboembolism, diagnosed on April 5.

Since then, he went through a strict medical protocol, which included rest, medication, and a gradual return to training. And after being listed for two matches where he stayed on the bench, he completed 50 appearances for the Morumbi club, putting in a more than secure performance even while improvised in defense.

He didn’t lose a single aerial duel in the match (winning all three out of three attempts) and made 14 defensive actions, committing no fouls.

Negrucci was no less impressive. In total, he made seven clearances in the northeast, recovered six balls, and blocked one shot.

On Sunday (5), the team faces the derby against Palmeiras at Morumbi. And Crespo will have Arboleda back, who served an automatic suspension for his third yellow card. Among the injured, it’s unlikely any will return in time for the match. But by all indications, fixing the defense is no longer a problem for the coach.

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