Roger rues São Paulo’s first defeat in the Brasileiro: “Hard to swallow” | OneFootball

After São Paulo's 1-0 defeat to Atlético-MG at Arena MRV, coach Roger Machado spoke about the match in a press conference. According to the manager, the team performed well but faltered in decision-making in the final third.

“Hard to digest”

When asked about the tactical nuances of the match, the coach explained his tactical choices. “We had control of the match. I think what we lacked today was the final third, that final play. In the second half, with the substitutions, I tried to stick with the same objective, but with Luciano so we’d have one more player in midfield and could exploit the depth.”

“Towards the end, with the unfavorable score, I put two faster players on the wings. It’s hard to digest a result like this when you play well. Now it’s time for everyone to rest, because we have a derby at the weekend,” he concluded.

What was missing?

In the coach’s view, what São Paulo lacked to come out victorious at Arena MRV was better decision-making. “What we owed today was precisely making better decisions in choosing the pass, seeking depth, a more accurate switch of play. I think we executed much of what we planned, but even though the plan works, the team that puts the ball in the net has the advantage,” he commented.

“I think we excessively relied on corner crosses, which didn’t allow us to get the ball into the box and gave the opponent opportunities for transitions. That’s something we need to look at calmly, but it was a specific issue, a characteristic of this particular game,” he concluded.

São Paulo’s next match

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