Two more ties for Brazilian teams in the Libertadores

Gremio Porto Alegre made its 2009 Libertadores debut on Wednesday, but could not get beyond a scoreless draw against Universidade de Chile at home. The locals dominated a game they could have easily won by 3 or 4 goals, losing several scoring opportunities and complaining about some poor refereeing (two penalties should have been awarded, as well as a goal which was badly waved off). Meanwhile, Cruzeiro went to Ecuador and tied Deportivo Quito 1-1. The Brazilians could also have won the match, but are still happy with one away point - as long as they are able to beat the same opponents when they play each other again in Brazil.

All in all, Brazilian teams have not yet been great in this year's tournament, but they haven't been completely terrible either. Some, like Sport, have managed great results playing solidly (though not marvellously). It's still early, and from what they have shown so far, all the five teams have a chance to advance to the second round.

Gremio jumps to second place

Gremio likes playing at the Aflitos Stadium in Recife. Two years ago, the stadium was the venue for one of the most fantastic matches ever played by the team, which heroically battled on with just eight players to guarantee a win over Nautico that granted the team the promotion to the following year's Serie A. Yesterday, after Nautico had to wait an extra year to join Gremio in the Brazilian football elite, both teams faced each other again for the first time in the same venue of that historical night. The end result was the same, a win by Gremio, even if not in as dramatic fashion. Playing a defensive style, the visitors took advantage of counter-attacks to get the 2-0 win, with Tuta scoring in the first half and Carlos Eduardo in the second. The result puts Gremio in second place, with 24 points. Nautico is tied for last with America with just 10 points in 14 games.

America Natal ended up losing to Flamengo on the road (1-3) to drop one spot to the bottom of the table. Flamengo now has 11 points in 11 maches, with the win over America being only the team's second of the season. At least Flamengo fans were able to celebrate the third goal, scored by Obina, who's still recovering his fitness after being out for a couple of months due to an injury.

Meanwhile, Santos went to Goiania and lost its four-game unbeaten streak, falling to Goias by 1-0 on a goal by Welliton. The locals climbed back to third in the standings, with 23 points, while Santos remains with 18 points, good for 12th in the standings. Atletico Paranaense tied Cruzeiro at home (2-2), with the visitors scoring in injury time of the second half.

This was the same result of the Figueirense against Corinthians game, in Florianopolis. The locals lost several chances to end the game early, always stopping on great saves by goalkeeper Felipe. Corinthians took advantage of the few chances it created and escaped with a very good away draw. Internacional once again took advantage of the play of Alexandre Pato, scoring a 1-0 win at home over Parana to reach 20 points, 9th in the standings.

But the most entertaining match of the evening was reserved to the Parque Antarctica Stadium in Sao Paulo, where visitors Vasco jumped to an early 2-0 lead in the first half, just to see Palmeiras come back to win 3-2. The locals scored twice in the final 10 minutes, despite the fact they had been playing one man short since the 65th minute. The result prevented Vasco from reaching fourth place in the standings, instead providing Palmeiras with the chance to get past Vasco and move into 6th in the standings.

Gremio escapes accident with plane in Sao Paulo

The Gremio football team was supposed to be aboard the plane that crashed Tuesday evening as it landed in the Congonhas Airport in Sao Paulo. According to team directors, the team changed plans at the last minute, opting to take a different plane en route to Goiania, where it faces Goias on Thursday. TAM flight 3054, an Airbus A320, crashed on a cargo hangar building besides the runway after it failed to stop and slid off the tarmac. It's believed close to 200 people may have died on the accident, including passengers and people who were in the building hit by the plane.

Gremio and Parana win in the Libertadores

Gremio and Parana managed to get important away wins this Thursday, in their debut at the group stage of the 2007 Copa Libertadores.

Gremio went to Asuncion and left with a great 1-0 win over local Cerro Porteno, thanks to a goal scored by Lucas in the 52nd minute. Argentine goalkeeper Saja, playing for the Brazilian side, made several difficult saves during the game, including a penalty kick in the last minute of regulation, to guarantee the visitors the three points. The sad note about the game was left to the local fans, who threw stones and bottles at the bus that took Gremio to the stadium, and later even started throwing objects at the players themselves on the field. After the missed penalty kick, the referee had to end the match due to an increase in the number of dangerous objects thrown on the field.

Parana had a less troubled debut in Venezuela, where it beat local side Maracaibo 4-2. The first half ended on a 1-1 draw, with Parana opening the score with Josiel in the 39th minute and Arismendi tying the game six minutes later. The Brazilians came back stronger in the second half and scored twice in a two-minute span - in the 55th and 56th minutes - with Dinelson and Henrique. Casseres still scored for Maracaibo in the 67th minute, but Gerson made sure the local comeback would not take place with a goal two minutes later.