With a goal scored by Rolheiser in the 45th minute of the second half, Santos beat Palmeiras 1-0, on Saturday evening (15), at Vila Belmiro, and got out of the relegation zone in the Brazilian Championship. With this second defeat in a row, coach Abel Ferreira’s team continued its score to 69 points, three points behind leaders Flamengo.
Saturday’s match was valid for the 13th round of the competition, which was postponed due to the Club World Cup.
The two teams faced each other on the sixth of this month, where Palmeiras won 2-0 at Allianz Parque Stadium. Vitor Roque, who scored the two goals, will participate with the Brazilian national team in two friendly matches against Senegal and Tunisia.
At Villa Belmiro, Santos had the support of Neymar, who refused to play on the Allianz artificial pitch. Juan Pablo Voevoda even tested Neymar as a striker, but the star had a secret night with the ball at his feet and when shooting the ball at his teammates.
Fearing the possibility of a return to Serie B, Santos fans made noise before the ball rolled and sang a chorus of Night of War. The black and white team tried to respond by possessing the ball, but faced difficulties in penetrating Palmeiras’ defensive block.
The main scoring opportunity came from Santos with Barreal 20 minutes into the match. Barral entered the area, faced the goal and asked to save Carlos Miguel with his left foot.
Abel Ferreira returned in the second half with Flaco Lopez and Luigi, respectively, replacing Bruno Rodriguez and Felipe Anderson. Alverde’s team became more dangerous, after suffocating in the first stage.
With the match open, Vojvoda released midfielder Ze Rafael in the 41st minute of the final phase and replaced midfielder Rolheiser. Four minutes later, Rolheiser received the ball from Robinho Junior inside the area and scored the ball to secure the victory.
With 36 points, Santos finished 16th behind Vitoria.
Palmeiras returns to action on Wednesday (19) against Vitoria at Allianz Parque, at 7pm. On the same day, Santos will host Mirasol at 9:30 pm, at Villa Belmiro Stadium.
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