I admit drawing with Caxias, even losing, but drawing with Caxias in the semifinal, in full Beira-Rio, that is not acceptable.
Inter at the end of last year was more effective, played against relegated teams and managed to win, had a repertoire of moves, and mainly, a lot of people arriving in the area.
Yesterday, we started like this, crushing Caxias, and attacking on both sides, recovering the ball, scoring with more vitality and with a little pressure. We took two unnecessary scares before scoring the goal, on the counterattack, when we had 4 inside the area. Then we missed chances to expand the scoreboard and leave the game quiet.
Again, in stoppage time, we conceded a goal in which, if I’m not mistaken, there was only one Caxias player in the Inter area, and the scoring failed from the cross to, in my opinion, the goalkeeper.
The second half was the same, with Inter pressing and Caxias defending. The team was doing well, and the replacement of Wanderson by Pedro Henrique was healthy, giving more offensive impetus. Incredible as it may seem, Inter did not feel De Pena’s expulsion, and continued looking for the goal, with Estevão losing alone with the goalkeeper. So far I don’t understand Maurício’s departure, which can only be justified by tiredness.
We still had a scare, in a move that, I believe, the Caxias player was offside, but we were eliminated on penalties.
It’s another gauchão in which we are out of the final, this time eliminated by a team that didn’t even come to score in Beira-Rio.
There was a lack of boldness, there was fear. If he wanted the victory, he should have returned at half-time with Pedro Henrique, removed De Pena, with a card, adjusted the team, but Mano did not create a repertoire in the pre-season.
It is necessary, however, to strongly criticize the management, due to the lack of harmony with the coaches. It doesn’t mean exempting them from bad jobs, and Mano fits these bad jobs in the gauchão.
Inter brought Ramirez, known for setting up teams in positional play, which requires movement from all athletes, but the squad was made up of players who did not want to move. Ed, Patrick, Cuesta, Dourado, and D’Ale were not on the same wavelength as the coach.
Then came Medina, who was begging for spikes and sharp players. The management even tried, with David, but the options were poor, and our attack was made up of midfielders. Leaving Medina, the attackers came on the flanks, and Mano, had at his disposal, two sharp attackers on the flanks, two attacking midfielders, and players who played both up front and in defence, like De Pena, and even two offensive wingers.
But Mano is a coach who doesn’t like to attack very much, and the management didn’t give him midfielders, at least one midfielder to replace Gabriel.
I say it again, it’s not about exempting coaching work. With this team, it was mandatory not only to reach the final, but also to win the Gauchão, and it was possible, all you had to do was adjust the team’s positioning and functions, but Mano didn’t do that. It’s not his fault that we missed goals, but it’s his fault that the goals we conceded always come from the same side, always from the same place, and nothing has been fixed about that.
Particularly, I see Mano’s situation as unsustainable, his permanence unjustifiable, after so many mistakes in a row, and the same mistakes, as if it depended on just one player.
The lack of courage also reflects on the team, on the risk.
Mano was wrong to put Estevão in the team, and to select him to take the penalty. All previous collectors were right-handed. It’s not because Estevão is a kid, Matheus Dias entered to take the penalty and he did it with mastery. It’s conviction, and a player who takes two steps to take the penalty isn’t convinced of the strength needed for the last penalty. And there was Mercado, Bustos, and Tahuan Lara, who takes free-kicks, shoots hard and well. Bad choice.
But a coach who says that the team attacked a lot, at home, against Caxias, in a semifinal, with a full stadium, cannot convey courage or confidence to the penalty takers.