Two goals in two minutes, São Paulo beat Atlético-MG to seal revival | OneFootball

São Paulo beat Atlético-MG 2-0 at Morumbi on Saturday night (5), in a match valid for the 26th round of the Brazilian Championship, consolidating its recovery in the standings after ending an uncomfortable winless streak.

The team coached by Dorival Júnior built the victory mainly thanks to the intensity shown in the second half, when some players considered starters but who began on the bench, such as Calleri and Iago, came on and gave the team more dynamism, sealing the result in just two minutes.

The result lifts Tricolor to 10th place, overtaking rivals Corinthians and reaching 33 points, cutting the gap to the Libertadores qualification zone to six points.

The club returns to the field in the country’s main competition at 6:30 p.m. (Brasília time) next Saturday (12), when it will face Palmeiras away from home in the derby. Before that, there is the first leg of the Copa Sudamericana quarterfinals against Boca Juniors, in Argentina, at 9:30 p.m. (Brasília time) on Tuesday (8).

First Half: Balance and a Goal Disallowed by VAR

The opening half at Morumbi was very cautious and congested in midfield:

Hard-fought start: Atlético-MG tried to control the tempo through the passing of Alexsander and Bernard, while São Paulo looked to speed up attacks down the flanks, especially with Artur and Lucas Ramon.

São Paulo threats: Luciano came close in the 26th minute with a dangerous finish after a cross from Artur. Shortly after, in the 40th, center-back Sabino tried his luck from outside the box and nearly caught everyone by surprise.

Disallowed goal: In the 35th minute, Gustavo Santana rose for a header and sent the ball into the net, prompting Tricolor fans to celebrate. However, after a long VAR review, the officials disallowed the goal due to an infringement at the start of the play.

Second Half: Dorival’s Changes and Tricolor’s Blitz

After the break, Galo’s coach made three immediate substitutions to try to adjust the team. However, it was São Paulo’s changes in the 17th minute of the second half — with Pablo Maia, Calleri, and Iago coming on — that transformed the match:

Luciano goal (20/2): Shortly after the substitutions, the No. 10 took advantage of a cross inside the box and finished to open the scoring at Morumbi. The play even went to a VAR review before the goal was confirmed.

Iago goal (22/2): Giving the club from Minas Gerais no time to react, São Paulo doubled the lead in the very next attack. Full-back Iago, who had just come on in place of Wendell, appeared as a surprise and found the net to make it 2-0.

With the result secured, São Paulo managed possession in the final minutes and wrapped up an important victory in front of its home fans.

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