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The defeat in the first match of the round of 16 of the Brazil Cup hurts the fans. It hurts because I didn’t expect Botafogo to start well in the first 20 minutes and let Cuiabá balance the game in the first half. To complete, the Alvinegros saw the rival score the winning goal in the second half with just two submissions against Botafogo’s 13.
The feeling of scorched earth is understandable, among other things because it comes from the memory of the last two eliminations in the Copa do Brasil (against Aparecidense and Juventude). But a calmer look can bring other conclusions.
As against Goiás, Botafogo had exactly 22 submissions and managed to pressure the opponent. But this constant number of kicks and headers without balancing the nets worries, which seems to be repeated with Bruno Lazaroni’s team.
Pedro Raúl and Matheus Babi regret one of the chances lost by Botafogo – Photo: André Durão / ge
Last Tuesday night, Botafogo exchanged more than twice the number of passes since Cuiabá. With a clear project of looking for the opponent’s spaces by opening the game at the ends, the team failed to convert the almost 500 touches into goals. Try as he might, the chances created persisted in not entering. At a post-match press conference, Bruno Lazaroni diagnosed the reason for the lack of ball in the net: wanting this to happen soon.
– Unfortunately, anxiety about the result ended up compromising our level of performance. Regardless of anything, we had great volume. We finished 23 times (22 according to give), we had ten corners, 29 crosses in the area, plus ball possession. It was the first time of a draw, we did not come out with the result we expected, but I am convinced that we are capable of reversing on the return leg.
Bruno Lazaroni’s optimism is the same as any coach would say, but he may be right. For that, the team needs to dominate more the actions in the midfield, something that was lacking at the end of the first half and at the beginning of the second against Cuiabá. Also, as the coach has pointed out: be more efficient. Adding the last three games (two losses and a draw), there were 57 presentations and only one ball in the net. Detail: in the three games Botafogo reached the goal more than the rival.
Caio Alexandre even tried to ride a bike, but to no avail – Photo: André Durão / ge
That is why he “trips over his own legs” in the title of this review. The team seemed to have eliminated that difficulty that it had with Paulo Autuori, when he was struggling to create. With almost a month of Lazaroni in charge, that fear seems to be a thing of the past. But now, when he succeeds in creating, he misses the mark.
The rare full week that he had to coach the team is over and if he qualifies for the next phase of the competition, it will be even more difficult. With that, Botafogo needs to fix problems during matches, like a car that, while walking, changes its own tires.
– Photo: Disclosure
