Fortaleza thrashed by Botafogo-SP in Série B opener | OneFootball

In a disappointing debut in Série B of the Brazilian Championship, Fortaleza ended up being thrashed 4-0 by Botafogo-SP on Saturday night, in Ribeirão Preto.

See also: All news from Gazeta Esportiva Gazeta Esportiva’s YouTube Channel Follow Gazeta Esportiva on Instagram Join Gazeta Esportiva’s WhatsApp channel

Standings Situation

With the heavy defeat, Fortaleza starts the championship at the bottom of the table, while Botafogo-SP appears in first place.

📋 Match Summary

🔴⚪⚫BOTAFOGO-SP 4 X 0 FORTALEZA🔵⚪🔴

🏆 Competition: Brasileirão Série B – Round 1 🏟️ Venue: Arena Nicnet, Ribeirão Preto (SP) 📅 Date: March 21, 2026 (Saturday) ⏰ Time: 7:15 p.m. (Brasília time)

Goals

How the match went

At 33 minutes, Kelvin received the ball on the left and crossed into the box. Everton Morelli flicked it on with a header at the near post and Hygor appeared at the far post to open the scoring. Just four minutes later, after a scramble in Fortaleza’s box, the ball fell to Morelli, who doubled the lead. Still in the first half, Patrick Brey made a beautiful solo play and crossed for Vilar to head in the third goal, at 49 minutes.

In the second half, after a mistake by Fortaleza in building from the back, Rafael Gava stole the ball and set up Morelli, who scored the home team’s fourth goal just six minutes in. At 44 minutes, Maílton was shown a red card after a hard tackle, leaving Ceará with one man down in Ribeirão Preto.

Upcoming Matches

🔴⚪⚫Botafogo-SP⚫⚪🔴

⚔️ Match: América-MG vs Botafogo-SP 🏆 Competition: Brasileirão Série B – Round 2 📅 Date: April 2, 2026 (Thursday) ⏰ Time: 9:00 p.m. (Brasília time) 🏟️ Venue: Arena Independência

🔵⚪🔴Fortaleza🔴⚪🔵

⚔️ Match: Ferroviário vs Fortaleza 🏆 Competition: Copa do Nordeste – Round 1 📅 Date: March 24, 2026 (Tuesday) ⏰ Time: 9:30 p.m. (Brasília time) 🏟️ Venue: Estádio Presidente Vargas

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