FINAL 2ND LEG. 27 MAY 2001

CORINTHIANS 0
BOTAFOGO PAULISTA 0
(Corinthians wins the title 3x0 on aggregate)

This was the most boring final I've ever seen. Corinthians had the title all
but wrapped up (Botafogo needed a four-goal victory), so they showed little
interest in this match. There were few true scoring chances, most of them
created by Botafogo. This was Corinthians' 24th State Championship title.

Attendance : around 75,000


FINAL 1ST LEG. 20 MAY 2001

20 MAY 2001

BOTAFOGO PAULISTA 0
CORINTHIANS 3 : Marcelinho 60, 73, João Carlos 75

Only a big miracle can take the title away from Corinthians, since Botafogo
needs a 4-goal victory at the Morumbi Stadium to reverse the advantage of
the 'Timão'. The first match, though, wasn't as easy for Corinthians as the
final score suggests. Throughout the first half, the match was very open,
and both sides had plenty of chances to score. It was a surprise that it
ended goalless. After the break, either team could have scored first, and it
was Corinthians that took the opportunity, with Marcelinho scoring with one
of his trademark free kicks, which hit the crossbar before going in. That
goal unsettled the hosts, and that allowed Corinthians to put the tie beyond
Botafogo's reach. In the 73rd minute, Marcelinho struck again, finishing a
counter attack created by Éwerthon. Two minutes later, João Carlos all but
clinched Corinthians' 24th State Championship title, heading home a corner
kick taken by Marcelinho.


SEMI-FINALS - 2ND LEG. 13 MAY 2001

SANTOS 1 : Renato 33
CORINTHIANS 2 : Marcelinho 35, Ricardinho 93
(Corinthians wins 3x2 on aggregate)

This wasn't a match for the faint-hearted. The first half was electric, and
Santos was the first side to have a great chance to score, when they were
awarded a penalty. But Dodô blew it, hitting the post. A few minutes later
it was Corinthians' turn to be awarded a spot kick, but then it was
Marcelinho who hit the post. Santos finally opened the scoring in the 33rd
minute, with Renato. But less than two minutes later Marcelinho tied the
match for the 'Timão'. The 1x1 draw favoured Santos, so it was Corinthians
that made most of the attacking in the second half, but Santos was also
dangerous in counter-attacks. Santos seemed to have what it takes to hold
on to the result. In the 90th minute, Galván was sent off for a rough foul, but
nevertheless qualification to the final seemed to be in Santos' hands. But
in the third minute of injury time, Corinthians got the game-winning goal :
Ewerthon crossed low, Marcelinho fooled the defenders with a body move
and the ball ended up with Ricardinho, who shot it close to the right-hand
post from the edge of the box. And now Santos completes 17 years without
a title...

Red Card : Galván (Santos)


PONTE PRETA 3 : Washington 15, 29, Piá 56
BOTAFOGO PAULISTA 3 : César 47, Augusto 75, Leandro 80
(Botafogo wins 5x4 on aggregate)

Ponte Preta had qualification in its hands, but somehow stole defeat from
the clutches of victory. The home side completely dominated the first half.
Washington wasted a penalty in the 11th minute, but four minutes later he
made no mistake to put the 'Macaca' ahead. In the 29th, Washington struck
again, getting to a cross earlier than the defenders and blasting the ball
into the net. Early in the second half, Botafogo clawed back into the game,
thanks to a perfect free kick taken by César. But in the 56th minute, Piá
restored Ponte Preta's two-goal cushion. The visitors didn't give up, and
Augusto pulled one back in the 75th minute, heading home a cross by
Jadílson. Botafogo still needed one more goal in order to qualify. And it
came in the 80th minute. Cris made a nice individual play, and was brought
down inside the box. Up stepped Leandro and coolly converted the penalty.
For the first time in history, Botafogo will play the final of the São Paulo
State championship.


29 APRIL 2001

SÃO PAULO FC 3 : Carlos Miguel 8, Luis Fabiano 24, 53
CORINTHIANS 1 : Scheidt 64

São Paulo FC salvaged some pride with this ultimately meaningless victory
over archrivals Corinthians. The 'Tricolor' dominated the first half. It
didn't take long for them to open the scoring. Carlos Miguel made a nice
play and shot precisely in the corner, out of reach for goalkeeper Maurício.
In the 24th minute, the 'Tricolor' doubled its lead. França passed to Luis
Fabiano, who rounded the goalkeeper before scoring. Early in the second, São
Paulo FC sealed victory with another goal by Luis Fabiano. After that,
Corinthians pressed forward, and managed to pull one back through Scheidt,
who poked the ball in after a rebound by Rogério Ceni.

Attendance : 40,116


1 APRIL 2001

SANTOS 3 : Caio 8, Deivid 31, Rodrigão 75
PALMEIRAS 1 : Tuta 61

Santos got off from a 4-game losing streak and is back in contention for a
berth in the semi-finals. On the other hand, Palmeiras is under serious
treat of being relegated. The home team scored in their first chance of the
match. Marcos parried Deivid's shot, and the rebound fell to Caio, who
easily poked it in. Things got worse for Palmeiras soon after, when Taddei
was sent off for his second bookable offence. The 'Peixe' kept the pressure
on and made it 2x0 when Deivid converted a penalty shot. In the first half
injury time, Santos was awarded another penalty, but this time Marcos
stopped Deivid's shot. In the 61st minute, Palmeiras pulled one back against
the run of play, with Tuta heading home after a corner kick taken by Alex.
Twelve minutes later, Palmeiras had a good chance to tie the match, but the
Santos defenders managed to clear the ball off the line. In the 75th minute,
Rodrigão scored from the right side of the box, putting the match beyond
Palmeiras' reach.

Red Card : Taddei (Palmeiras)


18 MARCH 2001

CORINTHIANS 5 : Marcelinho 1, Luizão 40, Éwerthon 54, 78, Ricardinho 68
SANTOS 0

Looking at the final score is enough to see that this match was a massacre.
In the first minute of play, Paulo Nunes was brought down inside Santos box,
and the referee awarded Corinthians a penalty, which was converted by
Marcelinho. When Santos improved a little bit and started to create some
chances, the turning point of the match came. Paulo Nunes stole the ball
from a defender and passed it to Luizão. The attacker was then fouled by
goalkeeper Pitarelli, who was correctly sent off. From that point on, things
became easy for Corinthians. They made it 2x0 in the 40th minute, through
Luizão. Nine minutes after the break, the third goal came, in a fast play by
Éwerthon. Ricardinho made it 4x0 with a potent shot from the edge of the
box, and Éwerthon scored the final goal of the match in the 78th minute.


11 MARCH 2001

PALMEIRAS 0
SÃO PAULO FC 3 : Fábio Simplício 7, França 19, Júlio Batista 42

Firstly, I have to comment some off-the-pitch incidents. The São Paulo State
FA unwisely decided that this match should be played at the city of São José
do Rio Preto, to gather a bigger attendance. Well, on Sunday morning fans
from both teams met at the São Paulo bus station, causing a major riot,
which ended with the arrest of about 150 people. During the match, more
problems: when the teams came back from half time, São Paulo FC goalkeeper
Rogério Ceni was hit by a rock thrown by the Palmeiras fans. In retaliation,
the São Paulo FC fans started throwing objects at the Palmeiras keeper,
delaying the restart of the game for more than 20 minutes. If the match had
been played at its original venue, the Morumbi stadium, none of this would
have happened.

Well, lets go to the match. This encounter was 100% dominated by São Paulo
FC, which could have won by a much wider margin. The first goal came on the
7th minute, when Fábio Simplício hit a nice shot from outside the box,
completely out of reach for the goalkeeper. Twelve minutes later, the
'Tricolor' scored again, this time through França, who rose between two
defenders to head home a cross by Belletti. São Paulo FC kept the pressure
on, missing chance after chance. And the third goal eventually came, in the
42nd minute. Once again, Belletti supplied the cross, which was headed in by
Júlio Batista. In injury time, Palmeiras had their only scoring chance of
the first half: a long range shot by Magrão that forced Rogério Ceni to make
a good save. In the second half, São Paulo FC still pressed forward. In the
50th minute, they were awarded a penalty kick, but Marcos saved Belletti's
weak shot. The Tricolor then slowed the pace, and created just a couple more
chances.


11 FEBRUARY 2001

PALMEIRAS 1 : Basílio 32
CORINTHIANS 2 : Luizão 20, Scheidt 52

This defeat against bitter rivals Corinthians worsened the crisis for
Palmeiras and the sacking of coach Marco Aurélio is just a matter of time.
The match started at high pace, with many scoring chances for both sides.
Corinthians found the net first. Marcelinho took a corner kick, the
Palmeiras defenders tried to clear, but the ball ended up with Luizão, who
made no mistake. At the 32nd minute, Palmeiras got a deserved equaliser.
Basílio dominated the ball at the edge of the box and fired a perfect shot
in the top right corner of the goal. Palmeiras dominated the proceedings at
that point, but their dominance ended on the 36th minute, when Fernando
was sent off for his second bookable offence in the space of two minutes.
Corinthians created many scoring chances and they finally took the lead
seven minutes after the break. Once again, the play started from a corner
kick taken by Marcelinho. Scheidt rose higher than the defenders and headed
the ball in. Palmeiras came back to the game in the 71st minute, after the
sending off of Scheidt. The 'Verdão' created three fine scoring chances, but
goalkeeper Gléguer denied them.

Red Cards : Fernando (Palmeiras), Scheidt (Corinthians)


4 FEBRUARY 2001

SÃO PAULO FC 4 : Reginaldo 13, Cacá 72, Renatinho 80, Gustavo Nery 90
SANTOS 2 : Dodô 12, 87

São Paulo FC came out as winners on the first derby of the São Paulo State
Championship, ending Santos' five-match unbeaten streak in the start of the
season (two matches in the State Championship and three in the Rio-São
Paulo).

Santos started better and opened the scoring after 12 minutes. After a
corner, Claudiomiro headed the ball to Dodô, who shot with no chance for the
keeper. But on the next minute São Paulo FC tied the match. Renatinho took a
corner and Reginaldo headed it in. São Paulo FC had some good chances to
take the lead on the first half, but they were denied by good saves by Fábio
Costa. With nine minutes into the second half Fabiano was sent off after a
violent foul against a Santos defender. In spite of the numerical advantage,
Santos couldn't solve the good formation assembled by coach Oswaldo Alvarez.
And it was São Paulo who took the lead. Oliveira sent a long ball to Cacá,
who connected with a beautiful volley. With ten minutes to go, the Tricolor
struck again. Renatinho entered all alone the Santos' box and scored. Dodô
scored a second goal for Santos, but it didn't take long for Gustavo Nery to
score another for São Paulo FC, sealing the match once and for all.

Red Card : Fabiano (São Paulo FC)


1ST STAGE REVIEW

There were plenty of surprises in the first stage. As predicted, the 'big
four' teams (São Paulo FC, Santos, Corinthians and Palmeiras) had erratic
campaigns, with many ups and downs.

Corinthians had an awful start, but after Wanderley Luxemburgo took charge
of the team, they recovered superbly, winning nine in a row, and qualifying
to the semis. They are now favourites to win the title.

Santos was the most inconsistent team of the big four, but still managed to
qualify to the next stage.

Palmeiras, pretty much like Corinthians, had an awful start, but later
recovered just enough to end the competition in mid-table safety.

The big disappointment was São Paulo FC. The 'Tricolor' made a bright start,
and was considered favourite to the title. But later on, they lost four in a
row and didn't qualify.

But the biggest embarrassment of all was Guarani's, which for the first time
in history was relegated. Watch out for a move by the São Paulo State FA, in
order to change the rules and allow the team from Campinas to stay in the
first division.

To make things even worse for the Guarani fans, their archrivals, Ponte
Preta, ended up the first stage on the top of the standings. The other big
surprise was Botafogo Paulista, who with a late rally got an unexpected spot
among the top four. São Caetano and Rio Branco also had decent campaigns,
but missed qualification by a single point.


Tomaz R. Alves
tomaz@trivela.com
http://trivela.com