By Gustavo Castilho
Tricolor gaucho tries the hex of the competition while paulistas go in search of the tetra
Grêmio and Palmeiras will take to the field soon, at 9:00 pm, Brasília time, at the Arena, in Porto Alegre, to dispute another cup referring to the 2020 season. Cruzeiro, the team that most won the competition. The paulistas, seek the fourth championship of the Cup and another important cup for the season, since they also won the Libertadores.
In the last round Grêmio rested the title holders aiming for the decision. With this, coach Renato Gaúcho has almost the entire squad available for the final. The need for the Copa do Brasil title is even more urgent, as Grêmio finished the Brazilian Championship in sixth place, which does not give the direct place to the group stage of the Libertadores.
The two doubts of the tricolor gaucho in the last week were in the goal and in the defense, but Renato sent the starting team with Paulo Victor and Paulo Miranda. Both won the vacancies of Vanderlei and Rodrigues. The three-wheeler scheme, with Lucas Silva in place of Jean Pyerre, could be a second option for the coach. Geromel, Pinares, Luiz Fernando, Robinho, Leonardo and Michel, are out of the game.
The last rounds of the Brasileirão served as a test for coach Abel Ferreira, who played the squad well. For the confrontation against Grêmio, Palmeiras will have almost all maximum strength. Recovered from injuries, Zé Rafael, Wesley and Gabriel Veron are options for the Portuguese. Gabriel Menino also has a chance to return among the starters in midfield. Breno Lopes (not registered for the Copa do Brasil), Luan Silva (recovering from knee surgery) and Patrick de Paulo (with Covid-19) are the absences. Midfielder Lucas Lima is the only player hanging and if he takes the second yellow, he will miss Palmeiras in the second game, which will be next Sunday (03/03), at 18h, at Allianz Parque, in São Paulo.
