Striker Fred scored in the second-half to help Fluminense rally to
a 2-1 win over Botafogo on Sunday in the Rio Cup, the second stage
of the Rio de Janeiro state tournament.
In the Sao Paulo state tournament, Santos' 10-match winning
streak ended with a 1-1 draw with Portuguesa, while Sao Paulo beat
Ponte Preta 2-0 and Corinthians edged Sao Caetano 1-0.
Argentine striker German Herrera gave Botafogo the lead at
Maracana stadium with a penalty in the 36th minute before Fred
equalized with a wonderful volley shot from inside the area in the
60th.
Right back Mariano gave Fluminense the victory with a
close-range shot after a cross by midfielder Wellington Silva in
the 84th.
Fluminense had Argentine midfielder Dario Conca sent off for
a hard tackle in the 68th minute, and Herrera was sent off in the
78th after receiving his second yellow card.
Fluminense now shares the Group A lead with Flamengo on nine
points after three matches. Botafogo dropped to second place in
Group B, behind Vasco. The top two teams in each group will reach
the semifinals.
Vasco beat Boavista 1-0 with a penalty goal by former Werder
Bremen midfielder Carlos Alberto in the 71st at Sao Januario
stadium.
Botafogo won the Guanabara Cup, the first stage of the Rio
tournament, and can automatically win the state title if it also
wins the Rio Cup. If it doesn't, the club will face the Rio Cup
winner for the state title.
On Saturday, defending Rio champion Flamengo picked up its
third win in a row with a 4-0 thrashing of Resende in Volta
Redonda. Vagner Love scored his tournament-leading 10th goal in the
second half.
Flamengo played without Adriano, who is temporarily out of
the team because of personal problems. The Brazil striker did not
show up for practice on Friday, and local media widely reported
that he got into an altercation with his girlfriend at a party in a
shantytown.
Flamengo director Marcos Braz told a local radio station
Sunday that the striker has a drinking problem.
In the Sao Paulo state tournament, Santos drew 1-1 with
Portuguesa to end its 10-match winning streak. Brazil striker
Robinho played from the start at Caninde stadium in Sao Paulo, but
was held scoreless.
Santos remains ahead in the 20-team tournament despite the
draw. The two-time national champion has 32 points from 13 matches,
two points ahead of Santo Andre, which defeated fifth-place
Botafogo 4-1 in Santo Andre.
The top four teams will advance to the semifinal stage, which
begins in April.
Sao Paulo moved to third place with a 2-0 win over Ponte
Preta in Campinas with goals by striker Washington. Sao Paulo
goalkeeper Rogerio Ceni saved a penalty in the first half when the
score was 1-0.
The match marked the return of Sao Paulo coach Ricardo Gomes,
who missed three matches because of a minor stroke.
Defending champion Corinthians jumped to fourth in the
standings by beating Sao Caetano 1-0 with an 86th-minute header by
substitute striker Dentinho. It was the team's first win in three
matches in the state tournament.
Corinthians was without striker Ronaldo, who was rested for
the team's Copa Libertadores match against Independiente Medellin
in Colombia on Wednesday.
The match between 11th-place Palmeiras and last place
Sertaozinho was moved from Saturday to Monday because heavy rains
in Sao Paulo damaged the pitch at Palestra Italia stadium.
In Americana, Bolivia striker Pablo Escobar scored a goal to
help visiting Mirassol draw Rio Branco 2-2.
