Pedro Emanuel says Vasco players at physical limit after 1-0 loss to Fluminense | OneFootball

The demanding run has caught up with Vasco. After a 1-0 loss to Fluminense at the Maracanã on Saturday, Pedro Emanuel admitted several players are short of peak condition and, according to Globo.com, said he is not at 100 percent either.

Vasco pressed hard before the break then faded as fatigue showed. Adson, Andrés Gómez, Colidio, Thiago Mendes and Robert Renan are near their physical limit. Colidio, Paulo Henrique and Tchê Tchê have been managed and rotated in cup games to limit workload.

The situation worsened when Adson came on 14 minutes into the second half and was withdrawn 24 minutes later with thigh pain. Thiago Mendes also felt discomfort early in the match.

A packed calendar is the backdrop. Vasco are juggling the Brasileirão, Copa do Brasil and Copa Sul-Americana, with line-ups tweaked by opponent and game demands. The approach has worked better in the cups, eliminating Vitória in the Copa do Brasil quarter-finals and making a good run in the Sul-Americana, yet the team remain in the Z-4 with one win, two draws and four defeats under Pedro Emanuel.

The squeeze continues. The team travel to Bogotá on Sunday to face Santa Fe on Tuesday in the Copa Sul-Americana, then return to Rio the same day, arriving Wednesday. They rest Wednesday, train on Thursday and Friday, then head to Porto Alegre to play Grêmio on Saturday.

That leaves only two days to prepare for the league fixture after Santa Fe. Pedro Emanuel cited the difficulty of restoring key players physically while working on tactics, as Vasco seek a reaction in the Brasileirão with little room for error.

Source: Globo.com

“Artificial intelligence was used to assist in creating this article based on reporting from the original source quoted.”