Gremio wins another to reach second place

Gremio defeated Cruzeiro 2-1 to get a tie for second place in the standings of the Brazilian League, now with 35 points alongside Santos. Playing in the last of the three-match home ban in which no fans were allowed into the stadium, the team again had to play away from Porto Alegre, usin the Centenario Stadium in Caxias do Sul to host the match. Gremio played very poorly in the first half, as did Cruzeiro, and nothing but a scoreless draw could come out of it. Luckily, the locals were able to open the score in the second half, when Tcheco scored at the 50th minute mark after dribbling past a defender and putting the ball to the right of goalkeeper Fabio. Elber tied it for the visitors 11 minutes later on a header, after a cross from the left wing. Ramon restored the lead for the gauchos shortly after, in the 63rd minute, heading a ball after a corner kick. Goalkeeper Fabio, called by Dunga to the National Team, made an embarrassing mistake in the play, allowing it to go through his legs after fumbling it with the hands. It was Gremio's third straight win and sixth in seven matches during the month of August. On Saturday the team returns to its home ground, the Olimpico Stadium, and will again be allowed to have fans in the stands.

Gremio benefitted from Santos' 2-1 loss to Atletico Paranaense in Curitiba. Atletico dominated most of the match, against an extremely defensive Santos. The locals had the best chances in the first half, including a goal correctly waived off for offside. Marcos Aurelio opened the score for Atletico five minutes into the second half, and almost scored again after Santos decided to adopt a more attacking style. The second goal was only scored in the 86th minute though, with William heading a cross from the right. Santos still had a consolation goal in injury time, with Rodrigo Tiui.

Goias left the relegation zone and finally ended its 11-game winless streak after beating Fluminense in Goiania, 3-1. The last win had been on June 1, and since then the team had tied four times and lost seven. Nonato scored twice and Fabio Bahia once for the locals, with Juliano scoring for Fluminense. The team from Rio lost its third straight game and is winless in five.
Continental champions Internacional finally won a game after its Libertadores title, going to Recife and beating last place Santa Cruz 2-0, with goals by Fernandao and Adriano. The team from Porto Alegre is now in fourth place with 34 points.

Defending champions Corinthians played without Argentine internationals Tevez and Mascherano and beat Sao Caetano 1-0, the same result Juventude achieved against Flamengo. Palmeiras remained unbeaten after the World Cup, but lost a great chance to get three points at home and only tied Figueirense 1-1.

Three matches complete the 21st round tonight, with Sao Paulo trying to open six points at the top of the table when it hosts Fortaleza, second last in the standings. Vasco can make it a three-way tie for second place by beating Ponte Preta at home, while Parana tries to recover from two straight losses in its match in Rio against Botafogo.