Palmeiras leads the Brazilian League, turns the game around, and thrashes RB Bragantino before ‘final’

Palmeiras took a brief scare but recovered to win 5-1 against Red Bull Bragantino on Wednesday (15) at Allianz Parque, opening the 28th round of the Brazilian League. In the first half, Red Bull Bragantino opened the scoring with Jhon Jhon’s penalty, showcasing the ‘Law of the Ex’, but Bruno Fuchs equalized just before halftime. In the second half, Vitor Roque shined, scoring twice and directly contributing to Flaco López’s goal. Felipe Anderson also added his name to the scoresheet during the home team’s thrashing.
The leader, Palmeiras, will face Flamengo in an ‘early final’ of the Brazilian League with a three-point lead, safe from being overtaken even in case of defeat, due to tiebreaker rules.
Palmeiras will play against Flamengo on Sunday (19) at 6:30 pm (Brasilia time) at Maracanã. The Alviverde enters the game with 61 points, three more than the second-placed team from Rio de Janeiro. Red Bull Bragantino, on the other hand, might find themselves lower in the table as they remain at 36 points. They will face Juventude at Alfredo Jaconi on the following Monday (20).
Red Bull Bragantino surprised by opening the scoring at 37 minutes of the first half with Jhon Jhon converting a penalty following a VAR review, indicating a handball by Bruno Fuchs. Palmeiras leveled the score in the first half at 51 minutes, with Fuchs heading in precisely after a corner, taking advantage of goalkeeper Lucão’s mistake. In the second half, Palmeiras displayed their offensive prowess and built the thrashing.
Vitor Roque turned the game around at 13 minutes with a precise shot in the corner. Felipe Anderson extended the lead at 28 minutes with a beautiful long-range strike. Flaco López, who debuted as a starter for the Argentinian National Team the day before, scored the fourth goal at 39 minutes, capitalizing on a rebound following Vitor Roque’s shot. To seal the thrashing, Vitor Roque scored his second goal at 43 minutes after a brilliant individual play inside the box. The ‘Tigrinho’ has been involved in 12 goals in the last 11 matches, showcasing his dominance. Palmeiras dominated the match statistics with 13 shots on target against Bragantino’s 2, while maintaining 59% of possession.