1971 Paulista champions | OneFootball

On June 27, 1971, at MorumBIS, the 1970 state champion defeated Palmeiras 1-0, with a goal by Toninho Guerreiro five minutes into the first half, and won the 10th Campeonato Paulista in Tricolor history, as well as the club’s third consecutive back-to-back state title (as had happened in 1945/1946 and 1948/1949), after 22 years.

Look back at this special title.

With the completion of MorumBIS Stadium in 1970, São Paulo returned to the routine of victories and titles established in the 1940s and 1950s. With no construction costs left to cover and with a packed house, Tricolor brought major idols into the squad, such as Gérson, Pedro Rocha, and Pablo Forlán. The investment paid off immediately: São Paulo were crowned Paulista champions in 1970.

To defend the champion’s crown in 1971, São Paulo did not rely on major signings (the main additions of the season, Nelsinho, Samuel, and Teodoro, would only arrive in the second half of the year). It was not necessary.

The team, basically made up of Sérgio in goal; Forlán, Jurandir, Arlindo (Lima for most of the tournament), and Gilberto Sorriso in defense; Edson, Gérson, and Pedro Rocha in midfield; and Terto, Toninho Guerreiro, and Paraná (or Toninho II) up front, was very strong, despite the below-expected result in the Taça de Prata at the end of 1970.

In the opening rounds of the 1971 Paulistão, the squad had only one scare: a 3-2 loss to Portuguesa in just the second round, on March 7 at Pacaembu. That was quickly overcome with a 2-1 win over Palmeiras two weeks later (21), at MorumBIS, with two beautiful free-kick goals by Pedro Rocha.

Tricolor then went on a seven-game unbeaten run, suffering another setback only against Pelé’s Santos at Vila Belmiro (a 1-0 defeat on April 21). That was followed by another unbeaten streak. This time, eight matches, ended in the derby against Corinthians at Pacaembu on June 6 (1-0).

For São Paulo, leaders on points (30), only three rounds remained in the championship, played in a round-robin format but with a directed schedule (with the second-half fixtures drawn up at the end of the first half, so that the final matches would involve the teams at the top of the table at that point). Thus, Tricolor still had Paulista de Jundiaí, Portuguesa (in second place and their direct rival, with 26 points), and Palmeiras left to face: all at MorumBIS, with the chance to reach 36 points in the standings.

However, some of the other title contenders still had extra matches to play. Palmeiras, with 24 points, and Corinthians, with 22, still had five and four games left, respectively, with maximum totals of 34 and 30 points. Santos, also with 24 points but with only three matches left, like Tricolor, could still match São Paulo’s total...

The defeat in the Majestoso did not shake the Tricolors. The following results also helped eliminate rivals from the race. On June 10, Santos drew with Portuguesa and said goodbye to the contest, also hurting Lusa’s chances. The situation with Corinthians was settled on June 13, when the black-and-white side drew 0-0 with green-clad Palmeiras, knocking themselves out of contention and also taking a point from their rival.

By then, São Paulo had already beaten Paulista de Jundiaí 3-2 and reached 32 points. Palmeiras had 31 and no longer had any extra games in hand compared to Tricolor. Due to the way the schedule was arranged, the two clubs would meet only in the final round. Before that, however, São Paulo still had Portuguesa in their path, while Palmeiras would host São Bento. Both teams did their homework, both with routs. A 4-1 win over Portuguesa, now out of the running, and a 7-0 victory over São Bento. That meant that in the decisive Choque-Rei on June 27, only a win would interest the green side, while a draw would be enough for Tricolor to celebrate the back-to-back title.

MorumBIS on the day of the 1971 title decider

More than 100,000 people were expected at MorumBIS for the derby. The opponent would have its full-strength lineup on the pitch, while São Paulo’s Osvaldo Brandão still had doubts about his starting eleven, as Edson was returning from injury.

With Cegonha included in the lineup, however, São Paulo also took the field with the best formation possible. The coin toss was auspicious: captain Gérson won and chose ends — Tricolor would begin attacking toward the club’s social stand side.

At 4:03 p.m., the ball started rolling. And Tricolor immediately went after the opposing defense, forcing the rival to stop the play with a foul, which Gérson took dangerously. Palmeiras responded right after, nearly opening the scoring with an Olimpico goal attempt. São Paulo did not back down: Paraná burst down the left and crossed into the box. Defender Minuca cleared it any which way, but straight to Toninho Guerreiro, who controlled the rebound with his chest and fired the ball into the back of the net! São Paulo 1-0!

The title-winning goal, by Toninho Guerreiro

With 85 minutes still left to play, MorumBIS roared in unison: “Champions, champions!”

With the scoreline strongly in their favor, Tricolor began to slow the game down whenever they had possession in the opponent’s half, or to rely on counterattacks when the ball was won back in defense.

In the 16th minute, Paraná made a good move but wasted the chance, letting the ball slip away into Leão’s hands. Soon after, Terto came close to finding the top corner, smashing the ball just past the post. With an hour still to play, “the Palmeiras fans are silent,” reported A Gazeta Esportiva on June 28. The team in green did little and posed no threat to Sergio’s goal — they only earned their second corner of the match near the end of the first half.

In the 39th minute, São Paulo pressed again. A cross into the area, the ball bounced unexpectedly, went past everyone, Pedro Rocha could not reach it, and it ended up going out over the byline after grazing the post. The first half ended with Tricolor ahead and in control of the match.

After the break, the MorumBIS loudspeaker system announced a new attendance record in São Paulo football: 103,887 paying fans, 11,548 minors, and Cr$ 913,196.00 in revenue.

On the pitch, going all or nothing, Palmeiras threw themselves forward, though largely without success: Sérgio’s kit remained practically clean — he had made only one save in the first half. On the counterattack, Tricolor remained dangerous. In the 17th minute, Paraná was brought down by Eurico and appealed for a penalty, but referee Armando Marques did not give it.

Around the 20th minute, Sergio finally made his first great intervention of the match, pulling off a superb full-stretch save on Dudu’s shot. Shortly afterward, however, the opponent’s most dangerous move was ruled out by the officials: Leivinha had put the ball into São Paulo’s net, but with his hand. “A handball goal does not count. And it did not count indeed,” noted A Gazeta Esportiva.

As was only to be expected, the final 15 minutes were extremely tense, with Tricolor practically the entire team inside their own penalty area, and the Palmeiras players all around, darting back and forth, trying to break through São Paulo’s wall. Only Leão and Minuca remained in the opponent’s half.

To give Tricolor fresh energy, Osvaldo Brandão changed the team: in the 31st minute, Pedro Rocha was replaced by Carlos Alberto. Shortly afterward, Luis Pereira struck Paraná violently: the winger had to leave the field to receive treatment. A man down, Tricolor nearly conceded the equalizer from a César header after a shot by Fedato that hit the crossbar.

In order to kill the pace in the closing minutes, the São Paulo players delayed the restart of play. César, Luis Pereira, Fedato, and Eurico abandoned civility and sportsmanship and resorted to physically attacking São Paulo players. Shameful scenes that ended with the sending-off of the last two mentioned. After dismissing them, Armando Marques let the clock run for another 30 seconds and blew the whistle: full time! São Paulo, back-to-back Paulista champions!

THE TITLE MATCH

06.27.1971São Paulo (SP)Estádio Cícero Pompeu de Toledo (Morumbis)

Sociedade Esportiva PALMEIRAS 0 x 1 SÃO PAULO Futebol Clube

SEP: Leao; Eurico, Luis Pereira, Minuca and De; Dudu and Ademir da Guia; Edu, Leivinha, Cesar and Pio (Fedato). Coach: Mário Travaglini. Red cards: Fedato and Eurico, 43’/2

SPFC: Sergio; Pablo Forlán, Jurandir, Arlindo and Gilberto Sorriso; Édson Cegonha and Gérson; Terto, Toninho Guerreiro, Pedro Rocha (Carlos Alberto) and Paraná. Coach: Osvaldo Brandão.Goal: Toninho Guerreiro, 5′/1.

Jurandir, Sérgio, Gilberto Sorriso, Arlindo, Edson and Forlán; Terto, Pedro Rocha, Toninho Guerreiro, Gérson and Paraná

THE CAMPAIGN

Single stage – First half02.28.1971 – 3 X 1 – Clube Atlético JUVENTUS (SP)03.07.1971 – 2 X 3 – Associação PORTUGUESA de Desportos (SP)03.12.1971 – 4 X 2 – PAULISTA Futebol Clube (SP)03.21.1971 – 2 X 1 – Sociedade Esportiva PALMEIRAS (SP)03.28.1971 – 2 X 1 – Associação FERROVIÁRIA de Esportes (SP)03.31.1971 – 1 X 0 – Associação Atlética PONTE PRETA (SP)04.04.1971 – 1 X 1 – Sport Club CORINTHIANS Paulista (SP)04.10.1971 – 3 X 1 – Esporte Club SÃO BENTO (SP)04.17.1971 – 1 X 0 – BOTAFOGO Futebol Clube (Ribeirão Preto – SP)04.21.1971 – 0 X 1 – SANTOS Futebol Clube (SP)04.25.1971 – 1 X 0 – GUARANI Futebol Clube (SP)

Single stage – Second half05.01.1971 – 1 X 0 – Clube Atlético JUVENTUS (SP)05.08.1971 – 2 X 0 – GUARANI Futebol Clube (SP)05.16.1971 – 0 X 0 – SANTOS Futebol Clube (SP)05.23.1971 – 2 X 1 – BOTAFOGO Futebol Clube (Ribeirão Preto – SP)05.26.1971 – 3 X 0 – Esporte Club SÃO BENTO (SP)05.30.1971 – 1 X 0 – Associação Atlética PONTE PRETA (SP)06.02.1971 – 2 X 1 – Associação FERROVIÁRIA de Esportes (SP)06.06.1971 – 0 X 1 – Sport Club CORINTHIANS Paulista (SP)06.12.1971 – 3 X 2 – PAULISTA Futebol Clube (SP)06.19.1971 – 4 X 1 – Associação PORTUGUESA de Desportos (SP)06.27.1971 – 1 X 0 – Sociedade Esportiva PALMEIRAS (SP)

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