Fluminense changes coach for the fifth time this year

Fluminense was again humiliated on a trip to Sao Paulo. Just like two weeks ago, when it lost to Ponte Preta in Campinas by a 3-0 score, it could not hold Palmeiras at Parque Antarctica, and lost 3-0 in a match it should have actually lost 4-0 if a Palmeiras goal had not been unjustly called off. With two quick goals, including a beauty by Francis, Palmeiras took control of the game and did not score more only because it did not seem to want to. To make matters worse for Fluminense, the team had a player sent off before the first half was over, killing any hope it had to come back in the game. Palmeiras managed its first win in the league without Edmundo, who was suspended and did not play. With six wins and three draws after the World Cup, the team officially joins the race for a spot in a continental competition next year. Meanwhile, Fluminense changed coaches after the game - for the fifth time this year. Antonio Lopes, fired from Goias earlier in the month, will be the new coach.

Internacional also started well against Goias in Goiania, built a 2-0 lead by the start of the second half but in the end allowed the locals to tie the game 2-2. Playing with only nine men (against Goias' ten) at the end of the game, the visitors allowed goals at the 84th and 88th minutes. Not even the loss of four players from the team that won the Libertadores seems to bother the team from Porto Alegre, still determined to fight for its fourth ever Brazilian League title.

Santos regained sole posession of second place after a 1-1 draw against Santa Cruz in Recife. After opening the score at the end of a very defensive first half, the team suffered with the pressure put forward by the locals to start the second half, and suffered the tying goal at the 53rd minute. The teams started playing more offensively and either side could have scored the winning goal, but in the end the draw persisted.

In Caxias do Sul, Juventude could not transform its domination over Corinthians into a goal, and had to settle for a scoreless draw at home against the troubled defending champions. Despite the heroic draw amidst its current crisis, Corinthians still finds itself among the four bottom teams that would play in the Second Division next year if the tournament ended today.

At the Maracana Stadium, Botafogo broke its six-game winless streak and defeated Cruzeiro 1-0, thanks to a goal by Claiton at the end of the first half. Cruzeiro had the best chances to score though, despite playing with only 10 men since the start of the game. Cruzeiro remains winless in eight matches.

In other games, Atletico Paranaense scored a strong 3-0 win at home over Ponte Preta to gain some important points in its quest to escape relegation. Flamengo went to Sao Caetano and had an important 2-2 draw, despite complaining a lot about the first Sao Caetano goal, when a clear handball was not whistled down by the referee.