Criciúma beat Ponte Preta and go top of Série B | OneFootball

Criciúma: new Série B leaderCredits: Disclosure / Criciúma

In the opening match of the 17th round of Série B, Criciúma defeated Ponte Preta 2-1 on Wednesday night (8) at Moisés Lucarelli in Campinas and moved to the top of the competition with 31 points. Ponte, meanwhile, sits in 19th place with 8 points and is under serious threat of relegation.

Marcelo Hermes scored both of Criciúma’s goals. He opened the scoring in the first half and netted the winner in stoppage time at the end of the match. Before that, Daniel Baianinho had equalized for Ponte Preta.

Vila Nova, in second place with 31 points, and Novorizontino, in third with 30, can still overtake Criciúma by the end of the round, which runs through Monday (13).

Vila plays this Friday (10) against Juventude at Alfredo Jaconi. Novorizontino, meanwhile, faces Operário away from home as well, at Germano Krüger on Sunday (12).

Juventude, in sixth, and Operário, in fifth, occupy the Série B qualification zone – this year, the teams that finish the first and second halves of the season in third, fourth, fifth, and sixth place will play in playoffs, with two of them earning promotion to the top flight in 2027.

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