São Paulo's goal drought a worry before Libertadores tie with LDU | OneFootball

Goals. That's what São Paulo needs to be able to reverse LDU's advantage in the second leg of the Copa Libertadores quarter-finals at 7pm (Brasília time) on Thursday (25th), at Morumbi, and fulfill the fans' desire to advance to the next stage.

The problem is that São Paulo's phase is not very encouraging when it comes to scoring goals.

Since André Silva was injured in the game against Atlético-MG, on August 24, for the Brazilian Championship, Tricolor's offensive sector has decayed. Only one goal was scored in the following four games (against Cruzeiro, Botafogo, LDU, and Santos), curiously the worst sequence of Hernán Crespo in charge of the club, including his first stint in 2021.

As the absolute starting striker after the injuries of Calleri and Ryan Francisco, André Silva does not captivate all the fans, for sure. But the fact is that his absence seems to have accentuated a position that the board itself considers problematic (no wonder they rushed in the last days of the transfer window to try to hire an option).

Interestingly, the only natural piece of the position available in the squad is precisely who scored the only solitary goal of the Morumbi club in this sequence of net shaking scarcity: Dinenno, who secured the slim 1-0 victory over Botafogo.

The Argentine, who arrived by recommendation of the previous coach Luis Zubeldía, did not seem to have captivated the current commander, Hernán Crespo. And the opportunity in the starting 11 appears when only a mixed lineup is put on the field.

Also curiously, the redeeming goal ended a personal drought of the player, who had not scored since August 19 of last year, when he still defended Cruzeiro, in a passage hampered by serious injuries.

End of drought for one, agony that continues for others. The emotion of Dinenno seems to be unique among all São Paulo strikers who are fighting for a chance in the duel against the Ecuadorians, where Tricolor needs to win by three difference to qualify directly without the need for penalties.

That is, almost unique, since another one who managed to score goals recently was another one contested by fans and critics: Gonzalo Tapia. The Chilean has scored twice recently, against Fluminense (July 27) and Atlético-MG (August 24).

Who also fondly remembers the duel against the Rio opponent is Ferreirinha. The winger, who has had injury problems recently, had a spectacular scoring phase before the Club World Cup break, perhaps motivated by TV presenter and former player Neto, who provoked him with mockery. But with the resumption of competitions, the performance dropped, with only one goal scored, precisely against Fluminense.

Without a center forward, who has been acting as a reference man in the area is Luciano. And indeed the number 10 seems to be the only one to have a guaranteed place in the offensive duo. But the phase is also not the best: he hasn't scored a goal in 13 games, since the victory over Juventude by 1-0, on July 24.

Finally, there is Rigoni. The Argentine, hired on the last day of the window under the shadow of Crespo's stint in 2021, is not living the best moment of his career: he hasn't scored since January 31 of this year, when he still defended León. At the time, he scored in the 2-1 victory against Mazatlán, for the Mexican Championship. The drought also extends to assists. The last direct participation in a goal was on March 30, when he gave a decisive pass against Pumas, also for the Mexican league.

The not very encouraging numbers of the attackers are just another detail of how the historical statistics also play against Tricolor in the duel with LDU.

This year, for example, the club has only once won a game by three goals difference, a score that qualifies it directly to the semifinal. And it's been a while. It was in the 4-1 over Mirassol, on February 5, still for the Paulista Championship.

And speaking of Libertadores, the record is also not encouraging: the last time São Paulo won by three goals difference in the main club competition of the continent was on the distant May 25, 2021, when they beat Sporting Cristal, from Peru, by 3-0. A relief for those who found this text very pessimistic: after all the coach at that time was, look, Crespo. At least something positive to cling to in a moment where all vibrations need to be more than positive.

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