Calleri hails São Paulo shift in draw, backs Roger: “He merits praise” | OneFootball

Jonathan Calleri was once again a key figure for São Paulo. This Wednesday, the Argentine found the net and leveled the score in a 1-1 draw against Internacional at Beira-Rio, in the ninth round of the Brazilian Championship. Tricolor endured a third straight match without a win, and the striker was quick to defend the work of head coach Roger Machado, who was hired less than a month ago.

“Taking one point is not bad, but I think in the second half we had the better chances and could have left with all three points. We are all united, the president [Massis], the director, Rafinha, Rui Costa, the coach, who is a great coach. We have to value him more, because he is a great coach. We are together on the same path, because we want to achieve great things this year,” the center forward told Cazé TV.

São Paulo had been coming off a week free of matches due to the FIFA international break. Because of that, Roger Machado was able to implement his style of play, which was evident on the field. Tricolor took the field with a new setup, with Artur on the right wing to give the team more width.

“We trained every day. It’s not like he speaks Chinese, he’s a football coach. He also comes from previous work that had been going well. He passed on his style of play and how he wants the team to play. We worked a lot physically and tactically. I think what’s missing is the final pass to finish better. As forwards, we have to demand more from ourselves, because we have to score more goals. Today, given how the match went, the draw is not bad for us. As I said, one point is better than none, but we should have won considering how we played in the second half,” Calleri said.

São Paulo did not have a great first half and fell behind as early as the 22nd minute, when Alerrandro got in front of his marker and fired past Rafael. In the second half, Tricolor had more possession and, although it did not create many clear chances, managed to score the equalizer in the 41st minute. Calleri then highlighted the team’s change in attitude compared with the previous two defeats.

“Given how the match was going, scoring almost at the end was important for us, because we were coming off two defeats and we hadn’t been playing well. In these ten days, we were able to work a lot, Roger is a great coach. Today, I think there was a change compared with the previous matches. Of course we want to win, I think we are still missing a little more in the final third. We have a great midfield, a great defense, but I think the final touch is what’s missing for us to finish a little better,” he admitted.

“But in the second half we played much better, we had chances. Ferreira came on well, Artur is a great signing. We have to keep picking up points, this was an important one. Now we have to leave everything on the field against Cruzeiro to stay near the top of the table. The last two defeats weigh on us, we could have picked up more points because we were top of the table, but we will fight until the end,” the player concluded.

League standings

With the result, São Paulo went a third straight match without a win, with two defeats and one draw. Tricolor reached 17 points and remained in second place, but could still lose the spot if Fluminense or Flamengo win.

São Paulo’s next matches

São Paulo vs. Cruzeiro (10th round of the Brazilian Championship) Date and time: 04/04 (Saturday), 6:30 p.m. (Brasília time) Venue: Morumbis, in São Paulo (SP)

Boston River-URU vs. São Paulo (first round of the Copa Sudamericana) Date and time: 07/04 (Tuesday), 9:30 p.m. (Brasília time) Venue: Estadio Centenario, in Montevideo (Uruguay)

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