Loan star scores stunner, São Paulo thrash Atlético-MG to reach final | OneFootball

São Paulo managed to overturn the deficit in the semifinal against Atlético-MG and advanced to the grand final of the Copa do Brasil Sub-20 by defeating their rival 3-0 on Thursday afternoon (4), in a match held at Distrital do Inamar, in Diadema.

In the first leg, at Atlético’s home in Belo Horizonte (MG), Tricolor lost 1-0 and needed a win on their own turf to qualify for the final of the youth tournament and defend their champion title won at the end of 2024.

Djhordney, Lucyan, and Paulinho, a forward loaned by Crespo since he had been training with the senior squad in recent weeks, were the goalscorers who secured São Paulo’s qualification. The top scorer reached his 19th goal of the season for the under-20s, with a stunning strike from outside the box to close the score still in the first half. The team from Minas Gerais had Igor Toledo sent off in the first half and could not recover.

The match started off very intense, but Tricolor began to impose themselves in search of the result. Thus, at the 25th minute, Djhordney finished off a well-taken corner, with a deflection off Igor Toledo, to open the scoring. Shortly after, Lucyan took advantage of a rebound from the goalkeeper and made it 2-0.

After Igor Toledo was sent off for Galo, Paulinho increased the lead with a beautiful goal. The top scorer controlled the ball masterfully, got past his marker, and fired a left-footed rocket into the top corner of the opposing goalkeeper’s net.

The home team returned with three substitutions in an attempt to pull off a miracle, but São Paulo managed to control their rival’s momentum and almost scored a fourth goal, but Lucyan was stopped by a great save from the Minas Gerais goalkeeper.

Now, the Tricolor under-20s will face América-MG in the grand final of the Copa do Brasil, where Allan Barcellos seeks his second championship. The final will be a single match, next Tuesday (9), at 8:00 PM (Brasília time). The venue will be the Independência stadium, in Belo Horizonte, as announced by the CBF. SporTV will broadcast the match live.

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