Palmeiras rotation pays off, early results show strengths | OneFootball

Palmeiras hasn't had a brilliant start to the season in terms of performance, but they have been able to leverage their strengths to combine squad rotation with important results in the Campeonato Paulista. This was evident in the 1-0 victory over Mirassol last Saturday at Arena Barueri, maintaining Verdão's 100% success rate at the start of the season.

Faced with an intense schedule in the early days of the year, coach Abel Ferreira implemented a new rotation and opted for an alternative lineup to face Mirassol. Two youth academy players were given a chance — midfielder Luís Pacheco and defender Arthur — while Vitor Roque, recovered from an ankle injury, returned to the starting lineup.

Palmeiras started the match well at Arena Barueri. Verdão began the game with a strong pace and created good scoring opportunities, putting Walter to work in the opening minutes. Arthur was frequently involved on the left side, as was Vitor Roque, who took advantage of the space and moved a lot in the attacking field. The team also had more possession.

Around the 20-minute mark, Mirassol began to balance the game and posed a threat for the first time, but without causing major scares for the home fans. The match became more contested, with Palmeiras observing the opponent having greater control of possession. However, the alviverde defense gave little space to the rival players. Verdão slowed down the initial pace, and the game opened up for both sides.

After 30 minutes, Palmeiras' attack became less effective. Sosa, Bruno Rodrigues, and Maurício participated very little in the game. The lack of connection among the trio left Vitor Roque very isolated in the attack. Proof of this is that, in one of the few plays where Verdão posed a significant threat, three of the four attackers were involved: Maurício exchanged passes with Bruno Rodrigues and, after receiving it back, passed to Vitor Roque, who poorly executed the shot on goal. Towards the end of the first half, the home team also overused crosses into the area but without success.

Second Half

In the second half, Palmeiras returned to the field with the same team as the first half. However, after just over 10 minutes, Abel Ferreira noticed that Mirassol came back stronger after the break and quickly decided to make two changes: Riquelme Fillipi replaced Vitor Roque and Flaco López replaced Bruno Rodrigues. The Alviverde showed little urgency at the start of the final half.

After 25 lukewarm minutes, Palmeiras managed to open the scoring in one of their specialties: the aerial ball. The entry of Flaco López was decisive. The Argentine suffered a foul on the side of the field. Sosa took the free-kick to the far post, and number 42 positioned himself very well, winning the header and scoring the winning goal for Alviverde. After some missed chances, Verdão was finally efficient.

Just like in the classic against Santos, Palmeiras did not play a brilliant game. The alviverde second half was particularly lackluster, with unappealing football, also due to Mirassol's defensive quality. Despite this, Verdão did not suffer defensively and showed more volume than in other matches, gaining rhythm for the rest of the season.

The fact is that, even amid a chaotic start to the season with injuries and an intense schedule, Palmeiras has managed to make the most of what they do best. Abel Ferreira's team is building resilience for upcoming commitments and promises to be a strong contender in the title race for another year, despite the coach not promising any trophies.

"Upcoming Palmeiras MatchesNovorizontino vs. Palmeiras (fourth round of the Paulistão)Date and time: 01/20 (Tuesday), at 8:00 PM (Brasília time)Location: Estádio Dr. Jorge Ismael de Biasi, in Novo Horizonte (SP)Palmeiras vs. São Paulo (fifth round of the Paulistão)Date and time: 01/24 (Saturday), at 6:30 PM (Brasília time)Location: Arena Barueri, in Barueri (SP)

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