Decisive figure ignites São Paulo with long-range opener | OneFootball

Pablo Maia broke it open in the 43rd minute with a crisp left-footer from outside the box, as São Paulo and Coritiba finished 1-1.

From Victor Sá's lay-off, the midfielder stepped onto a loose clearance and drilled into the bottom left (43.), giving Tricolor Paulista control before the interval.

After the restart he kept forcing the issue, letting fly from range (78.) and later slipping in Ryan Francisco, whose effort was blocked in the first minute of second half stoppage time, with Coxa scrambling.

Maia's numbers underlined his grip on midfield: four attempts, all from outside the box, plus 81 of 86 passes completed and 14 successful balls in the final third. That blend of circulation and punch made Coxa-Branca defend deeper for long spells.

With Soberano set to host Bolívar in the CONMEBOL Sudamericana next, his influence remains central to their build-up. Coxa welcome Corinthians in the league.