This final was the final that was not in the Libertadores.
Palmeiras beat Gremio this evening to win the Brazilian Cup for the fourth time in its history. The youth team of Palmeiras rose to the front as Wesley (21) and Gabriel Menino (20) scored the two goals to win 2-0, making the score 3-0 on aggregate. The match was everything the Libertadores final wasn’t: fast, thorough, high intensity, and high quality.
Palmeiras went into the match with a 1-0 lead after Gustavo Gomez handed them victory in Porto Alegre. This result undoubtedly helped the quality of this match, as Grêmio had to attack from the start, which they did. It also helped that this game was played on a new São Paulo evening, rather than the wet Rio era.
Both teams were in it from the word. Grêmio looked good with Maicon and Matheus Henrique holding the strings in midfield, although Palmeiras was a major threat on the counterattack as Rooney and Wesley provided some significant speed on the wings.
The teams entered the first half of this match and tied the score 0-0. Grêmio got a chance to take the lead on the night and equalize early in the second half. But it was certainly Palmeiras’ counterattack that proved vital. Rafael Vega, who is really maturing into a good player and nominated for Player of the Tournament, broke through the midfield and fed Wesley to the left of the penalty area. Instead of cutting off his right foot, Wesley shot early with his left foot and hard, making the ball past the keeper, who could actually have performed better, although he may have been surprised that Wesley took it the first time.
Weaverton made two good saves from Palmeiras, as expected. Renato Gaiccho threw Guilherme Azevedo and Ferreira for Alisson and Bepic in about 60 minutes, and at the talented Jean-Pierre a few minutes later. Ferreira looked like something might happen, as he did in the first leg, and Jean-Pierre provided some extra quality. But Palmeiras had his own cards up his sleeve, including Patrick de Paula, who they brought in to back things up.
Grêmio continued the pressure, but it was another Palmeiras counterattack, in a move that involved three more submarines, which proved fatal. Mike to Rooney to Willian to Gabriel Menino. And the goal. He went 84 minutes and that was match, group, match and cup.
Palmeiras could be hoping for a very impressive season and a treble of titles: the Paulista State Championship; Libertadores Cup; The Brazilian Cup. That success was dampened a bit by not winning the league and their disappointing display in the Club World Cup, where they lost in the semi-finals to the Tigres. But these two things can be put on the list of intense matches, excessive travel and fatigue. Not too shabby considering all conditions. Not freakin’ shabby at all.
Abel Ferreira deserves special mention for the role he played. The Portuguese coach took charge of the squad midway through the season with the squad amid the Covid crisis and struggling for form. Add to that the complexities of actually living under Covid restrictions, living in a new country, a new league, and managing a team in the middle of a seriously crowded calendar, the job the coach has done is truly impressive.
Palmeiras Academy deserves some recognition, too. Both of the team’s top scorers for the night come from the club’s youth system. Patrick de Paula (21) was on the field at the end, while Danilo (19), Gabriel Veron (18) and Renan (18) were on the bench.
As for Grêmio, it’s a disappointing ending to the season. They did well in this competition, finishing sixth in the league and another run in the Libertadores exit rounds, but they ended up empty-handed which they will be disappointed about.
Renato Gaicho, who has signed another contract and will enter his sixth season in charge of the team next season (which has already started), will point out the difference in financial resources between his team and the likes of Palmeiras and Flamengo, which he has. a point. They have lost some of their best players in recent seasons – Everton, Luanne and Arthur come to mind – and it would be nice to see some of that money being invested in the squad.
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