López scored a double and Endrick also scored in the ‘Verdao’ 4-0 victory against América
They are three points ahead with two days left until the end of the Brasileirao
Palmeiraswith a double from the Argentine José Manuel López and another from Endrick, isolated itself this Wednesday in first position in the Brazilian Championship by extending its lead as leader to three points after beat América 4-0 on the penultimate day of the League.
With only two days to go before the end of the tournament, the dispute between Palmeiras, Botafogo, Atlético Mineiro and Flamengo is red hot since anyone can keep the title although the São Paulo club, current champion, is doing well to return to the throne and thus win its twelfth title in the league. Those led by Abel Ferreira have 66 points, three more than Botafogo, which returned to second position after giving up a draw to Coritiba in the last minute, in a match that ended 1-1. Also with 63 points, Atlético Mineiro and Flamengo are in third and fourth place, respectively, by goal difference.
Palmeiras beat the bottom of the tournament from the first minute and was already relegated to the second division with a great goal from the striker Endrick, the promise of football signed by Real Madrid. The advantage for the Paulistas came, even in the first half, thanks to América, with a Eder’s own goaland the finish came almost at the end of the game with two goals from José Manuel ‘the skinny’ López in just a few minutes.
Flamengowhich had been boosted after the arrival of former coach Adenor Leonardo Bacchi ‘Tite’ at the command of the team and tied on points with Palmeiras, fell to fourth position after being humiliated 0-3 at the Maracaná by Atlético Mineiro. The Cariocas were defeated at home with goals from Paulinho, Edenilson and Rubens and thanks to a brave Mineiro who took advantage of the opportunities and poor play of flamenguista stars like the Uruguayan Giorgian De Arrascaeta.
Botafogo, in turn, had a match full of scoring opportunities, which were wasted or abandoned by luck for the Rio de Janeiro club, which dominated the match despite Coritiba’s bold defense. On their visit to Paraná, the match was plagued by fouls and left both teams with ten players before the end of the first half. Botafogo, with a penalty scored by Tiquinho Soares, scored in the minutes of stoppage time in the second half and remained one point behind the leader when the match was already over, but Edu got the tie for Coritiba in the last seconds in a counterattack.
Thus, Palmeiras can be crowned champion on Sunday with one day’s notice in case they beat Fluminense and their three pursuers tie or lose. Botafogo will host the threatened Cruzeiro (14th in the standings), Mineiro will host Sao Paulo (9th) and Flamengo will host Cuiabá (11th).
In other matches of the day, Fluminense won 0-3 on their visit to Santos; Internacional beat Cuiabá 0-2 and São Paulo defeated Bahía 0-1.