São Paulo ratings: who shone and who struggled in Santos draw | OneFootball

On the night of last Wednesday, São Paulo managed a 1-1 draw with Santos at Vila Belmiro, in the second round of the Brazilian Championship. The night featured both positive and negative highlights for the tricolor side. Lucas, Calleri, Maik, and Sabino made a difference, while Rafael, Alan Franco, and Pablo Maia were discreet and ended the match with more mistakes than successes.

Rafael was one of the names that fell short on the field at Vila Belmiro. The goalkeeper started well, making a miraculous save on a point-blank shot (offside) by Gabigol, but failed on Santos' goal. Adonis Frías shot from outside the box, and the number 23 deflected it into the middle of the area. The ball landed at the feet of Zé Rafael, who didn't waste the opportunity.

Pablo Maia was another who didn't perform well. The midfielder also had a good start to the classic but began to slow down many of São Paulo's plays, passing backward or opting for the most obvious pass. He was chosen to replace Marcos Antônio but couldn't perform, struggling to rotate the ball and make the game flow. Additionally, he didn't contribute effectively to the defense.

In the defensive system, Alan Franco wasn't at his best in various aspects: he couldn't contribute to the ball's exit, made many passing errors—almost leading to a counterattack—and also allowed Zé Rafael to be onside for Santos' goal. Another match to forget for the Argentine defender.

The Positive Outcome

Crespo's offensive bet, Calleri, didn't have a great first half. The Argentine was heavily marked by Adonis Frías and did very little, getting caught up in the marking and pivot attempts. However, in the second half, in one of São Paulo's few chances, he converted. The number 9 took advantage of a perfect cross, rose higher than Santos' defense, and equalized the score.

Lucas was one of Crespo's substitutions that changed the game. The number 7 was brought on at the 15th minute of the second half and brought more offensiveness and mobility to São Paulo's attack. Maik found a good pass to the forward, who reached the end line and crossed to Calleri's head, providing the assist for the tricolor's equalizing goal.

Finally, two others who played well at Vila Belmiro were Maik and Sabino. The young player from Cotia performed well and is improving every day, showing he can deliver quality in both attack and defense. He managed to contain the advances of Peixe's fast players and even participated in the goal play. Sabino, on the other hand, made crucial clearances and positioned himself very well, further demonstrating his effectiveness in any defensive system, whether with a duo or trio of defenders.

Standings Situation

With the result, São Paulo reached its third game unbeaten, with two wins and a draw in this stretch. The Tricolor remains undefeated in the Brazilian Championship and is in fifth place, with four points from two matches.

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