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Arboleda should start for São Paulo in the game against Bahia, on Saturday, at 7pm, for the 23rd day of the Brasileirão. The defender, however, only has this possibility due to lack of option, since Diego Costa, suspended, and Bruno Alves, as a precaution after contact with a family infected by Covid-19, are absences.
In a bad stage in Tricolor, the Ecuadorian had started for the last time in the match against Binacional, in Libertadores, when the team was already eliminated, and Diniz chose to send several field reserves. Before, the last game with the holder of the title had been against Bahia, in the first round.
Little by little, Arboleda lost prestige with Fernando Diniz, despite having been the undisputed head of the team for almost a year at the helm of the coach.
The irregular performances made him remove from the team, as well as Bruno Alves, to make way for Diego Costa and Léo, an improvised left-back. Bruno Alves, however, recently regained his place among the headlines.
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Grove in formation in São Paulo – Photo: Erico Leonan / saopaulofc.net
Distrust in Arboleda became more explicit in the middle of this week, when Diniz considered that the club should relax a health security protocol so that Bruno Alves could travel to Salvador to replace the sanctioned Diego Costa.
The intention was for him to return to the team only next week, as the team would travel directly from Fortaleza to Salvador, forcing Bruno Alves to travel from São Paulo on a commercial flight, a situation that has been avoided by the club.
In the end, the São Paulo medical department maintained its veto on the trip and reinforced the protocol that has made the club one of the least embezzled by the pandemic – for now, only Tchê Tchê, already recovered and playing.
In that period away from the team, Arboleda played just 105 minutes in 18 games. In addition to the 90 minutes against Binacional, he entered against Sport, Fortaleza, Lanús and Goiás, always at the end.
The player also lost points with the board. At the end of October, Arboleda went to a funk dance at dawn and was fined by the board: he appeared in images without a mask. The player already had Covid-19, during the championship stoppage.
+ Read more news from São Paulo
Arboleda, from São Paulo, in a funk dance – Photo: Reproduction
Last week he lost training and was out of the game against Vasco because he could not return from Ecuador after defending his country’s team in the qualifying rounds. And last year, during the holidays, the defender caused discomfort in the club by posing for a photo with the shirt of rival Palmeiras.
Arboleda should form a double with Leo, against Bahía. Diniz’s other options, less likely, are young Rodrigo Freitas, with only two games as a professional in São Paulo, and midfielders Luan or Tchê Tchê, who could improvise.
Therefore, the probable escalation is: Tiago Volpi; Juanfran, Arboleda (Rodrigo Freitas), Léo and Reinaldo; Luan, Daniel Alves, Igor Gomes and Gabriel Sara; Luciano and Brenner.
In Salvador, São Paulo will try to reunite with Atlético-MG in the leadership of the Brazilian. Diniz’s team has 38 points, with two games less, and is in third position, one point behind Flamengo. Miners lead with 42 points.
