1971 Paulista champions | OneFootball

On June 27, 1971, at MorumBIS, the 1970 state champion defeated Palmeiras 1-0, with a goal by Toninho Guerreiro five minutes into the first half, and won the 10th Campeonato Paulista in Tricolor history, as well as the club’s third consecutive two-time championship (as happened in 1945/1946 and 1948/1949), after 22 years.

Look back at this special title.

With the completion of MorumBIS Stadium in 1970, São Paulo resumed the routine of victories and titles established in the 1940s and 1950s. With no construction costs to cover and a full house, Tricolor brought major idols into the squad, such as Gérson, Pedro Rocha, and Pablo Forlán. The investment paid off immediately: São Paulo became Paulista champion in 1970.

To defend the title in 1971, São Paulo did not rely on major signings (the main additions of the season, Nelsinho, Samuel, and Teodoro, would only arrive in the second half of the year). It was not necessary.

The team, basically made up of Sérgio in goal; Forlán, Jurandir, Arlindo (Lima for most of the tournament), and Gilberto Sorriso in defense; Edson, Gérson, and Pedro Rocha in midfield; and Terto, Toninho Guerreiro, and Paraná (or Toninho II) up front, was very strong, despite the below-expected result in the Taça de Prata at the end of 1970.

In the opening rounds of the 1971 Paulistão, the group suffered only one scare: a 3-2 loss to Portuguesa in just the second round, on March 7, at Pacaembu. That was quickly overcome with a 2-1 win over Palmeiras two weeks later (21), at MorumBIS, with two beautiful free-kick goals from Pedro Rocha.

Tricolor then put together a seven-match unbeaten run, suffering another setback only against Pelé’s Santos at Vila Belmiro (a 1-0 defeat on April 21). That was followed by another unbeaten streak, this time eight matches long, broken in the derby against Corinthians at Pacaembu on June 6 (1-0).

For São Paulo, leader on total points (30), only three rounds remained in the championship, played in a round-robin format but with a directed fixture list (with the second-half schedule drawn up at the end of the first half so that the final matches would involve the teams at the top of the table at that point). Thus, Tricolor would still face Paulista de Jundiaí, Portuguesa (second place and direct rival, with 26 points), and Palmeiras: all at MorumBIS, with the possibility of reaching 36 points in the standings.

However, some of the title rivals had more matches left to play. Palmeiras, with 24 points, and Corinthians, with 22 points, still had five and four matches, respectively, to play, with maximum possible totals of 34 and 30 points. Santos, with 24 points but only three matches left, just like Tricolor, could reach the same point total as São Paulo…

The defeat in the Majestoso did not shake Tricolor. The following results also helped eliminate rivals from the race. On June 10, Santos drew with Portuguesa and bowed out of contention, also hurting Lusa’s chances. The situation with Corinthians was settled on June 13, when the black-and-white side drew 0-0 with green-clad Palmeiras, knocking itself out and also taking a point from its rival.

By then, São Paulo had already beaten Paulista de Jundiaí 3-2 and reached 32 points. Palmeiras had 31 and no longer had games in hand over Tricolor. By the way the schedule was arranged, the two clubs would meet only in the final round. Before that, however, São Paulo still had Portuguesa in its path, while Palmeiras would host São Bento. Both teams took care of business, both through routs: 4-1 over Portuguesa, now out of the picture, and 7-0 over São Bento. Thus, in the decisive Choque-Rei on June 27, only a win mattered for the green side, while a draw was enough for Tricolor to celebrate the back-to-back title.

Morumbis on the day of the 1971 title decider

More than 100,000 people were expected at MorumBIS for the derby. The opponent would field its strongest lineup, while São Paulo’s Osvaldo Brandão still had doubts about his starting eleven, as Edson was returning from injury.

With Cegonha in the lineup, however, São Paulo also took the field with the best possible formation. The coin toss was auspicious: captain Gérson won it and chose the side of the field – Tricolor would begin attacking toward the club’s main stand.

At 4:03 p.m., the ball started rolling. And Tricolor went straight at the opposing defense from the outset, forcing the rival to stop the play with a foul, which Gérson took dangerously. Palmeiras responded right after, nearly opening the scoring with an olimpico attempt. São Paulo did not back down: Paraná burst down the left and crossed into the box. Defender Minuca cleared it any way he could, but only into the path of Toninho Guerreiro, who controlled the rebound on his chest and fired the ball into the back of the net! São Paulo 1-0!

The title-winning goal, by Toninho Guerreiro

With 85 minutes still left to play, MorumBIS echoed in unison: “Champions, champions!”

With the scoreline firmly in its favor, Tricolor began to slow the game down whenever it had possession in the opponent’s half, or to rely on counterattacks when the ball was recovered in defense.

In the 16th minute, Paraná made a good move but wasted the chance, letting the ball slip away and into Leão’s hands. Soon after, Terto came close to finding the top corner, blasting the ball just past the post. With an hour left in the match, “the Palmeiras fans are silent,” reported the newspaper A Gazeta Esportiva on June 28. The team in green did little and posed no threat to Sergio’s goal – it only won its second corner of the game near the end of the first half.

In the 39th minute, São Paulo pressed again. A cross into the box, the ball bounced unexpectedly, passed everyone, Pedro Rocha could not reach it, and it ended up going out over the end line after brushing the post. The first half ended with Tricolor ahead and in control.

After the break, MorumBIS’s loudspeaker system announced a new attendance record in São Paulo football: 103,887 paying fans, 11,548 children, and gate receipts of Cr$ 913,196.00.

On the field, going all or nothing, Palmeiras threw itself forward, though in a highly ineffective way: Sérgio’s uniform remained practically clean – he had made only one save in the first half. On the counterattack, Tricolor remained dangerous. In the 17th minute, Paraná was brought down by Eurico and appealed for a penalty, but referee Armando Marques did not give it.

Near the 20th minute, Sergio finally made his first big intervention of the match, pulling off a fine diving save on a shot from Dudu. Shortly afterward, however, the most dangerous opposing move was ruled out by the referee: Leivinha had put the ball into São Paulo’s net, but with his hand. “A handball goal doesn’t count. And it didn’t count indeed,” noted A Gazeta Esportiva.

As expected, the final 15 minutes were extremely tense, with Tricolor practically the entire team inside its own box, and the Palmeiras players all around, darting back and forth, trying to break through São Paulo’s wall. Only Leão and Minuca stayed in the opponent’s half.

To give Tricolor fresh legs, Osvaldo Brandão made a change: in the 31st minute, Pedro Rocha was replaced by Carlos Alberto. Shortly after, Luis Pereira hit Paraná violently: the winger had to leave the field to receive treatment. Down a man, Tricolor nearly conceded the equalizer from a header by César after a shot by Fedato hit the crossbar.

To cool the tempo in the closing minutes, the São Paulo players delayed the restart of play. César, Luis Pereira, Fedato, and Eurico cast civility and sportsmanship aside and resorted to physical aggression against São Paulo players. Shameful scenes that ended with the last two mentioned being sent off. After they were dismissed, Armando Marques let the clock run for another 30 seconds and blew the whistle: full time! São Paulo, back-to-back Paulista champion!

THE TITLE MATCH

06.27.1971São Paulo (SP)Estádio Cícero Pompeu de Toledo (Morumbis)

Sociedade Esportiva PALMEIRAS 0 x 1 SÃO PAULO Futebol Clube

SEP: Leao; Eurico, Luis Pereira, Minuca and De; Dudu and Ademir da Guia; Edu, Leivinha, Cesar and Pio (Fedato). Coach: Mário Travaglini. Red cards: Fedato and Eurico, 43’/2

SPFC: Sergio; Pablo Forlán, Jurandir, Arlindo and Gilberto Sorriso; Édson Cegonha and Gérson; Terto, Toninho Guerreiro, Pedro Rocha (Carlos Alberto) and Paraná. Coach: Osvaldo Brandão.Goal: Toninho Guerreiro, 5′/1.

Jurandir, Sérgio, Gilberto Sorriso, Arlindo, Edson and Forlán; Terto, Pedro Rocha, Toninho Guerreiro, Gérson and Paraná

THE CAMPAIGN

Single stage – First half02.28.1971 – 3 X 1 – Clube Atlético JUVENTUS (SP)03.07.1971 – 2 X 3 – Associação PORTUGUESA de Desportos (SP)03.12.1971 – 4 X 2 – PAULISTA Futebol Clube (SP)03.21.1971 – 2 X 1 – Sociedade Esportiva PALMEIRAS (SP)03.28.1971 – 2 X 1 – Associação FERROVIÁRIA de Esportes (SP)03.31.1971 – 1 X 0 – Associação Atlética PONTE PRETA (SP)04.04.1971 – 1 X 1 – Sport Club CORINTHIANS Paulista (SP)04.10.1971 – 3 X 1 – Esporte Club SÃO BENTO (SP)04.17.1971 – 1 X 0 – BOTAFOGO Futebol Clube (Ribeirão Preto – SP)04.21.1971 – 0 X 1 – SANTOS Futebol Clube (SP)04.25.1971 – 1 X 0 – GUARANI Futebol Clube (SP)

Single stage – Second half05.01.1971 – 1 X 0 – Clube Atlético JUVENTUS (SP)05.08.1971 – 2 X 0 – GUARANI Futebol Clube (SP)05.16.1971 – 0 X 0 – SANTOS Futebol Clube (SP)05.23.1971 – 2 X 1 – BOTAFOGO Futebol Clube (Ribeirão Preto – SP)05.26.1971 – 3 X 0 – Esporte Club SÃO BENTO (SP)05.30.1971 – 1 X 0 – Associação Atlética PONTE PRETA (SP)06.02.1971 – 2 X 1 – Associação FERROVIÁRIA de Esportes (SP)06.06.1971 – 0 X 1 – Sport Club CORINTHIANS Paulista (SP)06.12.1971 – 3 X 2 – PAULISTA Futebol Clube (SP)06.19.1971 – 4 X 1 – Associação PORTUGUESA de Desportos (SP)06.27.1971 – 1 X 0 – Sociedade Esportiva PALMEIRAS (SP)

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