PortuGOAL
·4 December 2023
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Yahoo sportsPortuGOAL
·4 December 2023
Abel Ferreira and Palmeiras are on the verge of successfully defending their Campeonato Brasileiro title, heading into Wednesday’s final matchday.
Palmeiras hold a three-point lead over Atletico Mineiro and Flamengo, while their goal difference advantage of 8 and 16 respectively over their rivals means Verdão would need to suffer a disastrous final-day collapse in order to fail in their ambitions.
Abel’s men beat Fluminense 1-0 at home on Sunday afternoon to maintain control over their destiny. Meanwhile Botafogo, who led the table for much of the season under Portuguese managers Luís Castro and Bruno Lage, saw their title hopes ended with a goalless draw with Cruzeiro, seeing the Rio de Janeiro side drop down to 5th place.
For Abel, the chance to secure back-to-back Brasileirão titles, as talk of his own future remains hot on the agenda of Brazilian media outlets. According to reports, Abel has been approached by Qatari club Al Sadd with a proposal which would make him the highest-paid manager in the sport, with many expecting the Portuguese to accept the offer at the end of the season.
“I’m not going to comment on speculation, you know how football is here,” Abel said. “There are a lot of speculations, it's normal. The most important thing now is Wednesday. We want to seal this title because, at the moment, we are not champions. You know I have a contract and there are things in the contract which must be fulfilled.”
Abel has been a strong critic of many aspects of Brazilian football, including the hectic schedule. Indeed, earlier this year the former Sporting and Braga boss offered a list of problems the country must correct, including quality of the pitches, rest time between games and conditioning.
Speaking on Sunday and ahead of what many feel could be his last match as Palmeiras coach away at Cruzeiro on Wednesday, Abel repeated his concerns. “I said I would stop and reflect, as I do every year. I’ve said before that I was fed up, and that’s not a lie. Is it difficult to play games and travel every three days.
“It’s three years, not three days. Every year, I get to the end, I have a report ready of what I asked for the previous year, what happened and what I think the future of the club will be. This report is ready to be delivered. It’s very exhausting being a coach in Brazilian football, but I’m not ungrateful.”
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