Paulinho indoors, Palmeiras may get midfielder back v Flamengo; see | OneFootball

Palmeiras returned to training on Thursday morning at the Football Academy and began preparing for the decisive clash against Flamengo, scheduled for Saturday (23) at 9 p.m. at the Maracanã, in the 17th round of the Brazilian Championship.

The outright leader of the competition with 35 points, Verdão heads into the national classic with a four-point advantage over its Rio rival, in a direct showdown that could widen the gap in the table even further.

After the defeat to Cerro Porteño-PAR in the Libertadores, the players who were on the field for more than 45 minutes carried out recovery activities at the center of excellence. Forward Paulinho also continued his special physical recovery schedule. Meanwhile, the remaining players took part in technical and tactical drills on the pitch.

One piece of good news for the coaching staff was the progress of attacking midfielder Felipe Anderson, who moved forward in his recovery from a left thigh injury and took part partially in activities integrated with the squad. Left-back Joaquín Piquerez, meanwhile, who is recovering from surgery on his right ankle, did separate ball-work alongside youth academy players.

In addition to preparing for the match against Flamengo, Palmeiras is enjoying a strong run in the Brazilian Championship. The club has recorded the best start of its history in the round-robin era, played since 2003. With 35 points from the first 16 rounds, the team surpassed its 2009 mark, when it had collected 34 points in the same span.

The campaigns from its recent national titles also trail the current performance: in 2016 there were 33 points, in 2018 only 26, in 2022 the team reached 30, and in 2023 it had 28 points after the first 16 rounds. The last better start came in 1994, still under a different competition format, when Verdão totaled 41 points.

Palmeiras has led the Brasileirão for 10 straight rounds and is the club that has occupied first place the most times in the round-robin era, with 137 rounds at the top. Behind it come Corinthians (131), Cruzeiro (109), São Paulo (94), and Flamengo (88).

Looking at time spent in the G-4 since 2003, Verdão also leads comfortably: there have been 402 rounds among the top four, followed by São Paulo with 339.

What now?

With the defeat, Palmeiras lost the top spot in Libertadores Group F, which was taken over by Cerro. The Paraguayan side has ten points, against Verdão’s eight. Sporting Cristal is third with six.

Palmeiras’ next Libertadores match is next Thursday (28), against Junior, again in São Paulo, in the sixth and final round of the Libertadores group stage. A win would secure the team a place in the round of 16.

Before that, the team faces Flamengo on Saturday (23) at 9 p.m. Brasília time, in the 17th round of the Brazilian Championship.

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