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Beira-Rio, Tuesday night. Olympic Stadium, a week ago. The scenarios change, but Eduardo Coudet’s strategy for Inter in the two matches of the knockout stages of the Copa do Brasil was the same. The results too.
Both in the first leg and in the return match, the coach made conservations and rested a good part of the players with mixed teams. The team beat Atlético-GO 2-1 in both games and secured a place in the quarterfinals.
Qualification was almost essential also due to the financial intentions of the club. OR Inter took risks and had the luxury of playing just for the expense, and look there, to pass the stage.
The performance in the victory of the return leg, last Tuesday, yawned the few present in the stands and press stands of Beira-Rio on a night of atypical cold in November gaucho. But it worked.
Inter x Atlético-GO Copa do Brasil Beira-Rio – Photo: Ricardo Duarte / International
Inter qualified, pocketed R $ 3.3 million and reserved energy for the priority of remaining in the leadership in Brasileirão. The rival in the quarterfinals comes out in a draw next Friday.
– We try to plan in the best way. Try to save some players we need and see which ones are better. I think today (Tuesday) what we planned went well. Sometimes we play what we want, sometimes we play what we can. When we don’t have players with the same characteristics, we try to adapt and be smart – said Coudet after the victory.
The coach’s analysis summarizes what the ranking was. Consoled by the advantage of playing at a draw, the coach kept seven players in the lineup for the game.
Marcelo Lomba, Zé Gabriel, Víctor Cuesta and Patrick were the remnants. Even Thiago Galhardo, suspended for the next round of the Brasileirão, was saved and started on the bench.
In the first leg, away from home, the reserve team was intense and aggressive at least in the first minutes to open an early advantage. In Beira-Rio, this was not even close to happening.
Coudet maintained the team structure at 4-1-3-2, with Musto as first midfielder and Johnny as central midfielder. Leandro Fernández and Yuri were the attackers.
The identity of the team was only on paper. Inter did not manage to impose their high mark to suffocate Atlético-GO at any point in the game.
The opponent escaped the pressure and gained ground. And how. On many occasions it was Atlético who occupied the attacking field and forced errors on the ball outside of Inter.
The first half ended with countless shots and losses of possession. Inter did not take risks, only threatened to finish off Nonato, from outside the area.
Johnny did not perform well in Colorado’s midfield – Photo: Eduardo Deconto / ge.globo
Coudet sent Edenílson and Thiago Galhardo to warm up in the first half. The two entered the vacancies of Johnny and Leandro Fernández at halftime.
And Inter have improved. Not much, but enough to open the score. At 9, Nonato submitted from outside the box. Jean reached forward and the gunner was free into the area to push the nets.
With Edenílson on one side, Patrick on the other and Galhardo leading the attack, the team managed to print a dynamic closer to the usual. But the second goal came almost exclusively by individual merit: a goal from Rodinei, in a left-footed shot.
Atlético even declined, after a failure of the brand on the left side. Junior Brandão submitted and had another failure, Marcelo Lomba, to score the goal of honor, at the end of the match. No more than that.
With the starters rested and far from enchanting, Inter qualify for the quarterfinals of the Copa do Brasil and await the draw to face their rivals. Before, the focus is on Brasileirão, in the duel with Coritiba next Sunday, at 4:00 p.m., in Beira-Rio, for the 20th round.
