Current champion, Verdão seeks the 24th title of Paulista, while the tricolor tries to reach the same 22 of Santos
In a match valid for the departure of the finals of the 2021 Paulista Championship, Palmeiras and São Paulo will face each other this Thursday (20th), at 22h (Brasília time), at Allianz Parque, in São Paulo. The trajectories of the teams are different in the competition. Verdão entered the qualifying zone for the knockout in the last round of the group stage eliminating Red Bull Bragantino and Corinthians. Tricolor, on the other hand, was the owner of the best campaign in general and, because of that, has the right to play the second game, on Sunday, at 4 pm, at Morumbi Stadium. In the fourth and semifinals, São Paulo beat Ferroviária and Mirassol.
This is the second final in the history of the classic. The other took place at Paulista in 1992, in which Tricolor was champion. The Morumbi team, even, takes advantage in playoffs against Verdão: there are 13 wins in qualifiers for São Paulo and three for Palmeiras.
Current champion, Palmeiras seeks the 24th title of Paulistão, while São Paulo tries to reach the same 22 for Santos. The last time Tricolor won the state championship was in 2005 – taking into account all competitions, the club has not been champion since the 2012 South American Championship.
For the decision, coach Abel Ferreira will climb to maximum strength. Of the starting line-up, only Mayke will replace Marcos Rocha, out of a thigh injury. In addition to the full-back, Gabriel Veron, Breno Lopes and Kuscevic are also out due to injury. Alan Empereur, on the other hand, does not go to the field because he is in physical condition.
São Paulo should go to the field with the absolute majority of the base that eliminated Ferroviária and Mirassol, in the two playoff matches. Recovered, Daniel Alves probably takes the place of Igor Vinícius. Luciano is also an option in place of Gabriel Sara or Pablo. Éder is out with an injury.
