Grêmio coach Renato Gaúcho stated that the club will not be relegated. The statement came after Grêmio’s stumble, which drew 2-2 with Juventude, at the Arena do Grêmio, on Wednesday night (20). Currently, Tricolor is in thirteenth position in the Brazilian championship, with 40 points, just three above the relegation zone. With four days left in the competition, the minimum projection to remain in Serie A this year is 44 points, which means that Grêmio needs to add at least four more points to reach the goal.
Decisive sequence
Criciúma and Red Bull Bragantino open the relegation zone, both with 37, and tied with Fluminense, which is in 16th place, outside of Z-4 by tiebreaker criteria. The reduced distance did not increase Renato Gaúcho’s concern. The coach remains confident in maintaining the Tricolor in Serie A: “As long as I am here, Grêmio will not fall“said the coach, asking the fans for calm.
With only one victory ahead of Z-4, Grêmio will have a series of decisive matches ahead of them. The next match will be away from home against Cruzeiro, who can reach the South American Championship title match, and without needing to win to continue fighting for a place in the Libertadores. Then, the Tricolor returns to the Arena to host São Paulo, before traveling to the Northeast to face Vitória, which is also in the fight against relegation and a direct competitor of Grêmio. The last game of the season will be at home against Corinthians.
Game analysis
Grêmio opened the scoring three minutes into the game with a goal from Braithwaite, but suffered with the opponent’s possession of the ball. Mandaca took advantage of the Tricolor’s defensive sloppiness and scored with an aerial ball, tying the score in the first half. Upon returning to the second stage, the mistakes were repeated. Gustavo Martins failed to clear a ball and allowed Lucas Barbosa to finish a play started by Mandaca.
Grêmio goal at the start of the match (Video: playback/Instagram/@premiere)
The lack of defensive organization and nervousness became evident in the gaucho team and the stands were restless, until Marchesín saved a penalty committed by Reinaldo and revived the tricolor fans. In the 94th minute, Grêmio equalized, but even with the goal that guaranteed the tie, the team’s attitude was not pleasing.
Featured Photo: Renato Gaúcho at the edge of the field (Reproduction/Instagram/@renatogaucho)
