Missing Vasco? Team return to Brasileirão on Thursday, eye Z4 exit | OneFootball

Vasco takes the field this Thursday, July 16, at 7:30 p.m., to face Vitória at Barradão stadium in Salvador. The match is valid for the 19th round of the Brazilian Championship and marks the teams’ official return to the pitch after a break of more than 40 days in the calendar for the 2026 World Cup. The match will be broadcast live and exclusively on the Premiere channel throughout the country.

The Rio club’s situation in the national standings demands an immediate positive result away from home. Currently, Cruz-Maltino sits in 17th place in the tournament, opening the relegation zone with 20 points from 18 matches played. Since the team from Bahia is just above them, in 16th place with 22 points, a win for the Rio side in the Bahia capital would send the home team down in the standings, allowing the visitors to leave the Z-4.

+ Attacking reinforcement: Andrés Gómez reports back to Vasco and is expected to travel to Salvador

Pedro Emanuel’s debut as Vasco head coach

The big attraction of the clash is the debut of Portuguese coach Pedro Emanuel in Vasco’s technical area. The manager had only three intensive training sessions at CT Moacyr Barbosa to get to know the players and adjust the marking lines before the trip to the Northeast.

Without defensive midfielder Hugo Moura and attacking midfielder Matheus França, who recently left the club, the coaching staff is expected to make changes to the starting lineup to fill the gaps in the middle of the field.

The probable starting lineup has Léo Jardim in goal; Puma Rodríguez, Carlos Cuesta, Robert Renan and Cuiabano forming the back line; young Barros, captain Thiago Mendes and experienced Tchê Tchê in midfield; and up front Nuno Moreira, Spinelli and David.

Colombian forward Andrés Gómez also emerges as a strong candidate to start after returning from his World Cup participation with his national team.

Pedro Emanuel makes his debut in charge of Vasco – Photo: Matheus Lima/Vasco

Rival dealing with injury problems in Salvador

On the other side, coach Jair Ventura has headaches as he puts together the home team and is awaiting the medical department’s assessment to find out whether he will be able to count on Camutanga, Dudu, Yuri Sena and Edu. New signings Brítez, Pochettino and Wallace have been properly registered and are cleared to make their debuts, while right-back Fabiano Souza remains out due to documentation issues.

Leão’s probable lineup has Lucas Arcanjo; Edenilson, Cacá, Luan Cândido and Ramon; Baralhas, Zé Vitor and Martínez; Matheuzinho, Erick and Renê.

The CBF has appointed São Paulo referee Matheus Delgado Candançan to officiate the match in Salvador. The assistant referees will be Miguel Cataneo Ribeiro da Costa and Rafael Tadeu Alves de Souza, both also from the São Paulo federation. Operation of the video assistant referee (VAR) will be the responsibility of the experienced Heber Roberto Lopes, who will review controversial plays directly from the technical booth.

View this photo on Instagram A post shared by Vasco (@vascodagama)

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