This post is going to be a pretty big update on all things Cruzeiro within the last three weeks (everything from seal dribbles to a crazy Englishman on Gol TV), so enjoy the ride.

Cruzeiro vs. Vasco
On Sunday, Vasco played host to Cruzeiro. We came in knowing that Vasco would be a direct threat to our chances of qualifying for Libertadores. Even though Vasco has been practically unbeatable at home this season, we took care of business. Ramires (who has simply been a revelation this season) scored one of the goals and Thiago scored the other. Good performance by the boys, came out took three points and are now eight points clear of third placed Santos. Cruzeiro trail São Paulo by nine pints, but anything is possible; let’s just wait and see.

RapoGalo: The Clássico
The game had a great crowd, just under 41,0000 –mostly Cruzeiro fan– which made the atmosphere great. The game started off mostly with Cruzeiro calling the shots. It only took 12 minutes for my favorite Cruzeiro player, Roni, to score. Again in the 25th minute it was Roni making it 2-0 Cruzeiro, this time from the penalty spot. Atlético would not play dead in this game and showed off some incredible class and entertaining ability as Gerson and then Marinho scored for Atlético and sent the game into half time as a tie, 2-2. Atlético came out with ambition and completed an incredible comeback in the 58th minute. Marinho scored from the spot and became the name of the hour. It wouldn’t last. Guilherme was probably the best player of the match, and after being introduced as a sub in the second half, he scored and tied things up once more. Lightning struck twice, as Guilherme got another one 13 minutes from time. It was the games seventh and last goal. 4-3 Cruzeiro.

The Little Seal is back
One of the games highlights was the seal dribble. For those of you who don’t know, Kerlon is a 19-year-old who was being called Brazil’s Next Pelé (yes it is an official title) 2 years ago. After 2 long injuries, which have kept him out for practically the last 2 years, he made his re-debut a couple of games ago. One of the things Kerlon is famed for is the seal dribble. Yes, I bet you have seen it before a thousand times o YouTube. He pops the ball on top of his head and bounces it there. The move was first seen in the 2005 South American U-17 Championship. The move itself isn’t that effective, in my opinion, in getting around defenders. What it does do though is draw fouls and it wasn’t any different in derby. Kerlon popped the ball up and was fouled just outside the box by a viscous elbow from Coelho. Coelho got red carded and any chance of Atlético tying the match was gone. In the post game interviews all the Atlético players stated how the move was used inappropriately. In my opinion it was a totally legal thing to do and Coelho’s hit was very very viscous and he deserved to be sent off. The Cruzeiro fans began chanting Kerlon’s name after the red card.

Seal dribble and Clássico aftermath
The Atlético vs. Cruzeiro Clássico, played nine days ago, has been talked about all over Brazil. Every player has there own opinion on whether the seal dribble was an appropriate thing to do. Some say Kerlon was wrong to do it and only did it to get Coelho sent off, while other say it was Coelho’s fault for being so aggressive.

The Clássico also had some bad news, two people died and four were injured. One of the victims was a 90-year-old man who wasn’t even involved in the fighting. It’s sad how stupid these people are. Killing each other because of their love for there club? Stupidity.

AJ and DJ are back as well
Doesn’t it some like a lot of people are coming back? Well, it’s not only Kerlon and I, but DJ as well. Remember a while back I told you about our manager being suspended? Well, Cruzeiro’s great lawyers were able to prove his innocence and now that São Paulo have a 9 point lead he’s learned his lesson he has been able to return. He was present in the game against Atlético and Vasco, thankfully.

The boss in action.

Other games
These are the results you missed:
Cruzeiro 5 – 0 Palmeiras (Finals stats)
Juventude 1 – 0 Cruzeiro (Finals stats)
Cruzeiro 2 – 0 Gremio (Finals stats)
Flamengo 3 – 1 Cruzeiro (Final stats)

Courtesy of Benny from Blog do Cruzeirense

New site
Cruzeiro has updated their site, for those off you who read Portuguese. The site is now done by Globo — the Brazilian media lords. For all its hype, the site turned out to be very disappointing. Besides the new layout, the site got worse. The history section has close to nothing, squad information doesn’t even feature the player’s number, it’s just in Portuguese, and overall, very poor quality. For those of you who want to check it out here it is.

Non-related
Some unrelated news I wanted to talk about:
1.) I was watching the Barcelona vs. Sevilla game the other day on Gol TV and Ray Hudson was calling the shots. I like the guy and his crazy (sometimes sex involved) quotes, but as I was watching that game, he pissed me off to the point of no return. Aren’t commentators suppose to be neutral? His love for Argentina and all thing Argentine is beginning to annoy me. Must he mention an Argentine player when there isn’t even one on the field? Though he is better than some of Gol TV’s Spanish commentators who sometimes call gamed in broken English.

2.) The Brazilian Série B isn’t that popular, but some great players and teams have been there. A team that has really caught be attention is Ipatinga. The club was formed in 1998 and is already close to coming to the first division. Like most new clubs, Ipatinga had to climb itself up the state league latter (in most Brazilian states there are three leagues). Once they arrived at the first division of the state level and finish among the top four they could begin to play in the Brazilian Série C. After a couple of tries they were promoted last year from the third division and are currently second in the second division this year. I’m from the city of Ipatinga so that’s way I’m really rooting for this team. It would be incredible for them to be in the first division by just there tenth professional year.

The Game
Paraná Clube 2 x 2 Cruzeiro, Wednesday, 6:30 PM Eastern Time, Estádio Durival de Brito, Curitiba, 22nd round of the Campeonato Brasileiro 2007 – Attendance: ? – Profit: ? – Referee: Lourival Dias Lima Filho (BA) – Assistant referees: Alessandro Rocha and Adson Márcio Lopes Leal (BA) – Yellow card(s): Ramires and Charles (Cru) – Goals: Wagner, 25th; Josiel, 57th, Marcelo Moreno, 58th, Josiel (penalty), 70th minute – Paraná: Flávio; Daniel Marques, Neguette and Toninho (Batista); Leo Mattos (Alex), Adriano, Beto, Éverton (Goiano) and Paulo Rodrigues; Vandinho (Vinícius Pacheco) and Josiel. Manager: Lori Sandri / Cruzeiro: Fábio; Jonathan, Émerson, Thiago Martinelli and Fernandinho; Charles and Ramires; Leandro Domingues (Maicosuel) and Wagner (Aldo Souza); Alecsandro and Marcelo Moreno (Nenê). Manager: Ivan Izzo (Dorival Júnior was at a hearing at the time of the game). – Historically – Cruzeiro and Paraná have played 23 matches. Cruzeiro has won 10, tied 5, lost 8, scored 40 goals, conceded 32. In the Campeonato Brasileiro, they have played 17 matches, Cruzeiro has won 6, tied 3, lost 8, scored 30 goals, conceded 28. Cruzeiro and Paraná have never played each other in a final.

All the goals & All the plays

1.) Bad refereeing – In the first leg, Goiás won 2-0, with contraversial calls by the referee, especial when he awarded a last minute penalty that didn’t really exist.

2.) Cruzeiro B – Cruzeiro put out their B team in the Sudamericana and what do you expect when you put out a B team? Elimination.

3.) The post – Goiás played a good defensive game last night, but if it wasn’t for the all mighty post Cruzeiro would have scored more goals.

4.) Goiás’ defense – Goiás’ defense was practically uncrackable. Goiás played São Paulo last weekend and not even São Paulo’s A team, arguably the best in Brazil, could score on Goiás and the match ended up 0-0. Goiás played even more defensively against Cruzeiro and it was actually incredible Cruzeiro managed to score!

5.) No Roni, no Guilherme – Of course one of the other reasons Cruzeiro didn’t advance was because our two key goalscorers didn’t even play a minute last night.

6.) Advantages of being eliminated – less games, while our opponents in the Brazilian championship have more.

7.) Complete focus in Brazil – Cruzeiro will now have play completely focused in the Brazilian championship.

Overview
Overall, I feel that Cruzeiro played with “raça”, which means class and superiority. It’s just that Goiás’ defense was just to strong. Oh yea… congrats to Jonathan, Thiago Heleno and Ramires, three players that, I feel, had a breakout game.

The Game
Cruzeiro 1 x 0 Goiás (aggregate Cruzeiro 1 x 2 Goiás), Wednesday, August 22nd, 2007, 8:45 ET, Mineirão, Second leg of the first round of the Copa Sudamericana 2007 – Attendance: 11,409 paid, 12,656 present – Profit: R$52,947.50 – Referee: Wagner Tardelli (SC) Walter Reis and Ednilson Corona – Yellow card(s): Ernando, Vítor, Cleber Gúcho, Elson, Fábio Bahia (Goi); Wagner, Charles, Thiago Heleno (Cru) – Red(s): Elson (Goi) – Goals: Thiago Heleno, 14th minute – Cruzeiro: Fábio; Jonathan (Diego), Emerson, Thiago Heleno and Fernandinho (Marcinho); Charles and Ramires, Leandro Domingues and Wagner; Alecsandro and Nenê (Marcelo Moreno). Manager: Dorival Júnior / Goiás: Harlei; Fábio Bahia, Leonardo and Ernando; Vítor (Fernando Miguel), Amaral, Cléber Gaúcho, Élson, Paulo Baier and Chiquinho; Cristiano (Fábio). Tec: Paulo Bonamigo – Historically – Cruzeiro and Goiás have played 40 matches. Cruzeiro has won 21, tied 9, lost 10; scored 54 goals, conceded 43. In 25 games of the Brazilian Championship, Cruzeiro has won 13, tied 6 and lost 6, scored 37, conceded 28 goals. In the Copa Sudamericana, 4 games: Cruzeiro has won 2, tied 1, lost 1, scored 6 goals, conceded 6.

The Goals

The Game
Cruzeiro 3 x 2 Botafogo, Sunday, July 29, 2007, 6:10 ET – Mineirão, 15th round of the Campeonato Brasileiro 2007 – Attendance: 13,302 paid, 15,344 present – Profit: R$183,350.00 – Referee: Leonardo Gaciba da Silva (RS-Fifa) – Assistant Referees: Altemir Hausmann and Paulo Ricardo Silva (RS) – Yellow Card(s): Daniel, Charles, Guilherme (Cru) and Zé Roberto (Bot) – Red Card(s): Daniel (Cru) – Goals: Guilherme, 46, Wagner, 76, Guilherme, 80, André Lima, 86 and Renato Silva, 90 (+2) – Cruzeiro: Fábio; Jonathan, Emerson, Tiago Martinelli, Fernandinho; Charles, Ramires (Daniel); Marcinho (Maicosuel), Wagner; Roni (Nenê) and Guilherme. Manager: Dorival Júnior / Botafogo: Júlio César; Juninho, Alex (Zé Roberto), Renato Silva; Alessandro, Túlio, Lúcio Flavio, Joílson, Diguinho (Ricardinho); Jorge Henrique, André Lima. Manager: Cuca

“This team of mine is looking like a yo-yo, they go up and down.”

All right, now back to business. The São Paulo and Atlético-PR games… OK well I had said before that these games were crucial and that we would have to win these games at all cost, but it seems that the Cruzeiro players weren’t listening to me. Cruzeiro’s finishing is beginning to scare me because they could have finished off both São Paulo and Atlético-PR, but bad finishing got in the way of that… The 2-1 lose to São Paulo and 2-2 draw with Atlético-PR might depress some people, but I’m a positive person and Cruzeiro are only eight points (five if Cruzeiro wins on Sunday) from leaders Botafogo and can do themselves and the league a favor if they were to beat Botafogo on Sunday. It’s good to note that Cruzeiro has been without key players in both the São Paulo and Atlético-PR games. The Fab Four should play together for the first time in two rounds on Sunday. As for the Botafogo game, I’m not going to say much, but Cruzeiro have to beat them if they want to challenge for the title, it’s that simple. Gonna keep this post short so you don’t have to read my elongated analysis and opinions on the games gone and games to come. Do or die for Cruzeiro now…

Transfers

Porto has sold Pepe to Real Madrid for €30 million. So they said what the hey, let’s go out in a Brazilian shopping spree and buy some of their future prospects. And of course they go after Cruzeiro’s worst sector this year, the defense. Now Cruzeiro lost a couple of weeks ago Gladstone, who was really the only good defender we had, to Sporting Lisbon, on a one year loan deal with a buy out clause. So now Cruzeiro has decided to sell any hope our defense may have. So comes in to play Luizão, who was part of Brazil’s disappointing U-20 World Cup team. Porto has set their eyes on him and he will probably go. Even if he doesn’t go to Porto, it is reported that Boca Juniors are interested. If Cruzeiro were to sell him to Boca, it would be a very strange move. It is one thing to sell a player to our Portuguese rivals, at least they are in Europe, but to a fellow South American rival country like Argentina. Besides Luizão would be treated like dirt in Argentina. Anyway, those rumors have died down just a bit these days. Which is good, very good. Though Araújo is also said to be leaving, even though he has stated that he is fully committed to the team and tournament. We will just have to see. Speaking of future transfers now, Cruzeiro’s two biggest promises Guilherme and Kerlon, will probably be sold in the next year or two. Guilherme, 18 years old, was called up to the U-20 World Cup, but was later taken off the list. He is definitely a good player, has scored a lot of goals for us and is part of Cruzeiro’s “Offensive Quartet”, along with Araújo, Wagner and Roni. Kerlon is the other “promise” I had mentioned, he is good, but has been injuried a lot and hasn’t been able to show his moves, so Europe may not be in the near future for him. In my opinion, these two may hit European catalogs in 2008 and 2009, respectively.

But on the bright side Cruzeiro have finished up a deal with experienced São Caetano defender and captain Thiago, which will be a good edition to our defense. Also Cruzeiro might have an interest in Léo from Benfica, and Filipe from Deportivo de La Coruña (who had a good season in Spain), both being defenders. Not sure of our chances to get either, but both would be great in our squad.

Game review
The game against Goiás was in my opinion and in the opinions of the players the best performance by Cruzeiro so far this year (I even had an argument with a fellow blogger about it and I admit I got I bit carried away). Cruzeiro though scored first and let Goiás score in the 75 minute, but quickly took the lead again. The win stopped Goiás’ winning streak and also helped the league in general, because this week all of the top four dropped points. This was good for Cruzeiro’s confidence, beating the second placed team in the league. Though our schedule only gets harder… (Oh yea, almost forgetting, last week I read Cruzeiro was the club that brought the most fans to their games! This round Cruzeiro had the highest attendance in Brazil as well with 27,000, although the big derby Fla-Flu hasn’t been played yet do to the Pan American Games in Rio.)

Pre-game
Cruzeiro’s next opponent, after beating the second placed team, is last placed Náutico. Cruzeiro should win this game, but remember Cruzeiro have a habit of losing to smaller teams. It’s a game Cruzeiro should definitely win, especially because no player is out with a red card or accumulation of yellow cards for this game. D.J. (Dorival Júnior) will have a chance of repeating the same team with Cruzeiro for the first time in 43 games! Many are asking for the Offensive Quartet to stay, but D.J. may have other plans. A good victory here would help Cruzeiro’s goal deferential, if they don’t concede a goal. Cruzeiro though should be careful because after Nautico they must play São Paulo, and can’t risk losing players to suspension (we have been given 80 cards in total this year: 70 yellows and 10 reds!). After that we play Atlético Paranaense and Botafogo, two very good teams. What score do you predict? Is Cruzeiro going to go up or down in the standings (currently 8th)?