Defending champions lose in debut

Here are this weekend's results, for the first round of the 2008 Brazilian Serie A. Two-time defending champions Sao Paulo played with a reserve squad and lost at home to Gremio, 1-0. Newcomers Ipatinga also lost by the minimum score at home, to Atletico Paranaense. Cruzeiro recovered from the midweek loss at home to Boca Juniors, going to Salvador to defeat Vitoria - coming back to the First Division - by a 2-0 score. Nautico had a good debut, defeating Goias at home, 2-1. Sao Paulo State Champions Palmeiras lost to Coritiba away from home, 2-0. Internacional had a 1-0 home win over Vasco, while Botafogo had a 2-0 win at home against Sport. Fluminense also fielded a reserve squad in order to rest for the important Libertadores quarter-final against Sao Paulo, and managed a scoreless draw against Atletico Mineiro. Flamengo had a good 3-1 win at home over Santos, and Portuguesa played to a wild 5-5 home draw against Figueirense.

More comments about the games when I manage to come back tomorrow.