São Paulo is out of the Copa Sudamericana. This Thursday (31), the tricolor team was eliminated in Morumbi by LDU, from Ecuador, with a 5-4 defeat on penalties.
In penalties, the São Paulo team’s biggest villain ended up being Colombian James Rodríguez, one of the team’s main signings in the last transfer window. He was the only one who wasted his charge.
In the first match, in Ecuador, São Paulo lost 2-1, but returned home with the feeling that it was possible to reverse the deficit. Lucas’ goal, when the game was 2-0, gave Morumbi’s team confidence.
In front of their fans, the São Paulo team needed 77 minutes, 45 of which were in the first half and 32 in the final stage, to equalize the match. The equalizer came when Aborleda scored with a header, following a corner, in which the opposing goalkeeper was unable to clear a ball that went towards him.
Even losing and with one player less —Alexander Alvarado was sent off just 3 minutes into the final stage—, LDU didn’t just limit themselves to defending, they sought to attack and prevented the home team from scoring more than one goal. With the victory by the minimum score, the dispute ended on penalties.
Now, following the knockout competition, LDU’s opponent will be Defensa y Justicia, from Argentina, responsible for eliminating Botafogo in the quarterfinals.
In the other group, Fortaleza beat América Mineiro again this Thursday, this time, playing at the Castelão stadium, 2-1, and will be Corinthians’ opponent in the semi-final. In the first duel, the Ceará team won 3-1.
The São Paulo team advanced to the penultimate phase of the competition after eliminating Estudiantes (ARG) on penalties. In the first clash, in Itaquera, the home team won 1-0 and, in Argentina, they ended up defeated in normal time by the same score.
