Analysis: Palmeiras back on top after win that could have been bigger | OneFootball

Palmeiras returned to the top of the Brazilian Championship on Wednesday night after defeating Botafogo 2-1 in the seventh round. Allan and Jhon Arias were the goal scorers in the match that took place at Allianz Parque, in São Paulo (SP).

With this result, Verdão maintained their unbeaten record at home and are 100% at Allianz Parque, with two wins in two games. Abel Ferreira’s team did their homework in the back-to-back home games before heading out to play the Choque-Rei, a direct clash for the lead, at Morumbis.

Botafogo even tried to put on early pressure and almost opened the scoring with Matheus Martins in the third minute, after a mistake by Giay in the build-up. However, Palmeiras quickly found their rhythm, took control of the match, and opened the scoring in the eighth minute. Andreas Pereira shot from the edge of the box, the ball deflected off Allan, and ended up in the back of the net.

Unlike recent matches, Palmeiras seemed well-organized and less tired. In attack, Verdão was very productive, but lacked a bit more precision in the final decision. The home team could have gone into halftime with a much bigger lead than 1-0, but squandered several chances. Botafogo even had a player sent off in the 43rd minute of the first half.

As a result, Palmeiras played the final 45 minutes plus stoppage time with a man advantage. Verdão even extended their lead in the seventh minute with Jhon Arias, but saw Botafogo pull one back with Danilo less than ten minutes later. That goal put the visitors back in the game.

The Palmeiras team created chances, had at least three opportunities to score another, but “felt” the goal and suffered a bit more towards the end, even with a man advantage. Coming off the bench were Ramón Sosa, Felipe Anderson, Lucas Evangelista, Larson, and Vitor Roque. The last three had chances to give Verdão a more comfortable win, but were not effective.

“The Botafogo coach never gave up on the result, even with one player less. They were lucky with the way they scored the goal, in my opinion. We had five or six players inside the box and three of them managed to slip through, got back into the game. In the play with Roque, Mauricio, Larson, and that speedster, Lucas Evangelista didn’t know he could run that fast,” joked Abel.

“We could have scored there and given ourselves a bit more peace of mind to try to control the game better, but the match was always open until the end,” analyzed the coach.

What now?

After coming away with a 100% record at Allianz Parque in this two-game stretch, Palmeiras now head to Morumbis on Saturday to face São Paulo in a direct clash for the top spot in the Brasileirão. The match kicks off at 9 p.m. (Brasília time).

Palmeiras and São Paulo both have 16 points and occupy first and second place, respectively. Verdão has the edge over their rivals on goal difference.

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