São Paulo fired up for derby, aiming to match 2005 world champions' feat | OneFootball

As all moral, spiritual, and psychological support is valid for a derby, a statistic almost went unnoticed after São Paulo’s victory over Fortaleza last week.

After reaching historically negative streaks that the Tricolor hadn’t seen in a long time, with the sequence of matches without wins or goals, coach Hernán Crespo can now celebrate his entry into the club’s history. And this time, by matching a feat not achieved since 2005, an unforgettable year for the club’s Libertadores and Club World Cup triumphs.

Yes, it had been 20 years since São Paulo last won a match after being down a player from at least the 21st minute of the first half.

The last time was on July 9, 2005, when Alê was sent off in the 18th minute, but it didn’t stop the 2-0 victory over Flamengo at Morumbi, also in the Brazilian Championship.

But Crespo earned a huge bonus. That’s because, in away games, the drought was even longer: since March 7, 1998, when Serginho was sent off in the 20th minute, but Tricolor still beat Santos 3-2 at Vila Belmiro, in the Paulista Championship.

Of the last four times São Paulo had a player sent off, in three they managed to score a goal after the red card, including the match against Fortaleza.

This had happened against Libertad and Náutico, both in May, although it should be noted that the team from Pernambuco also had a player sent off, so the numbers were even. The exception was against Athletico-PR, in the match that eliminated Tricolor from the Copa do Brasil.

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