Schmidt: Vojvoda is Santos’ ace v Fortaleza, shows way to win | OneFootball

Midfielder João Schmidt believes that coach Juan Pablo Vojvoda could be a ‘weapon’ for Santos in the direct clash against Fortaleza this Saturday, in the fight against relegation. The match kicks off at 4 p.m. (Brasília time), at Vila Belmiro, for the 32nd round of the Brazilian Championship.

Vojvoda will face Fortaleza for the first time since leaving the Ceará team, where he made history. Now in charge of Santos, the coach has the mission to defeat his former club to move Santos, even if only temporarily, away from the danger of relegation.

Schmidt, therefore, believes that the Argentine’s knowledge of the rival could make a difference. After all, Vojvoda led Fortaleza for four and a half seasons and left the team recently, in July of this year.

“[Having Vojvoda on our side] Helps a lot. He knows the club [Fortaleza], knows the players. He knows how each one plays, how each one behaves on the field. I hope he brings us luck in this first game against Fortaleza and that we can come away with the win,” analyzed the Santos midfielder.

(Photo: Raul Baretta/Santos FC)

The path for Santos against Fortaleza

Santos occupies 16th place in the standings, with 32 points, and has opened up a one-point lead over Vitória, who lost in the last round. On the other side, Leão do Pici is in 18th place, with 27 points. A win, therefore, would be crucial for both teams.

João Schmidt then pointed out a path for Peixe to seek victory against Fortaleza in front of their fans. The midfielder gave a brief analysis of the opponent and understood that patience will be fundamental for the Santos team to leave Vila Belmiro with all three points.

“These games against teams at the bottom of the table… when they play away, they usually sit back a lot, and that sometimes ends up getting in the way. The anxiety to score, the anxiety to get ahead on the scoreboard. As the game goes on, that gets in the way a bit. We know we have to win tomorrow, but we have to be patient. We know how important the game is, but it’s not going to be 6-0. We have to be patient to control the game well and, at the right moment, the goal will come,” said the player.

Schmidt also emphasized that the Santos squad is aware of the need for a positive result this Saturday and mentioned the constant conversations that happen between players and the coaching staff before and after every match.

“We talk a lot, before and after every game we discuss what’s missing, what we need to improve. These games where teams sit back… it’s not just a Santos thing, all the big teams have trouble in these matches, where sometimes they play for just one chance. If you look, it wasn’t just Vitória here, it was against Grêmio too,” he said.

“That makes it harder to break through, it creates anxiety during the game. You know you need the three points, especially given the situation we’re in. We always talk to improve. But when the results go your way, things start to flow naturally. We’ve been working to reach that moment,” concluded the midfielder.

Upcoming Santos matches

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