São Paulo needed to win and they did, although with a lot of suffering. It was 2-0 at home against Cobresal (Chile) on the second day of the group stage of the Copa Libertadores, with two goals that came in the final stretch of the match.
The early elimination in the quarterfinals of the Paulista Championship and the defeat against Talleres (Argentina) in the debut of the largest continental competition increased the pressure on coach Thiago Carpini. There was no room for error at the Morumbi stadium.
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The race against time to find the opening of the scoreboard was extended by the lack of precision in the final meters and the stops of the visiting team’s goalkeeper, Leandro Requena. James Rodríguez started again, with a better level than in the previous cup match.
However, the answer was on the bench. Jonathan Calleri headed a cross into the area for a shot by Michel Araújo that was saved by the goalkeeper. The quickest to push it into the goal in the 82nd minute was André Silva, who had been on the field for just over ten minutes.
💪⚽ Aprevechó el rebote: así marcó André Silva el primero de @SaoPauloFC ante #Cobresal
🏆 Fecha 2 – Grupo B – CONMEBOL #Libertadores #GloriaEterna pic.twitter.com/xzVbFjNTGF
— CONMEBOL Libertadores (@Libertadores) April 11, 2024
Six minutes later relief came for the Tricolor Paulista fans. Calleri headed in a new cross, again Requena avoided the goal, but the attacker jumped in to capture the rebound and make it 2-0. It was the Argentine’s tenth goal in a Libertadores, equaling the record of Uruguayan Pedro Rocha as São Paulo’s all-time foreign scorers in this continental tournament.
©️⚽🔥 ¡Capitán y goleador! El tanto de Jonathan Calleri que sentenció la victoria de @SaoPauloFC ante #Cobresal
🏆 Fecha 2 – Grupo B – CONMEBOL #Libertadores #GloriaEterna pic.twitter.com/vyiVDV3F05
— CONMEBOL Libertadores (@Libertadores) April 11, 2024
Carpini’s team finished second in Group B with three units, one less than the leader Talleres. Barcelona (Ecuador) has two points and Cobresal closes with one.
