Counting on the brilliance of the young Panamanian striker José Kadir, just 18 years old, Botafogo defeated Sport 3-2, on Tuesday night (18) at the Nilton Santos stadium, in the match that opened the 34th round of Series A of the Brazilian Championship.
Thanks to the victory at home, Alvinegro de General Severiano occupies 5th place in the standings with 55 points won. Leão da Ilha do Retiro remains with the worst campaign in the competition, occupying the last place with 17 points.
Botafogo fans were not satisfied with their team’s first minutes on Tuesday night, as they saw Sport open the scoring just 13 minutes into the opening half. In a counterattack, Lucas Lima made a great deep pass to striker Léo Pereira, who advanced at speed before hitting goalkeeper Léo Linck.
And the situation for the team led by coach Davide Ancelotti worsened in the 27th minute, when Lucas Lima took a corner kick to the head of defender Rafael Thyere, who rose a lot to beat the mark and head the ball into the back of the opponent’s goal.
The two-goal deficit led to a change of attitude from Alvinegro, who needed just two minutes to take advantage of striker Artur, who unleashed a shot from inside the area after a great individual play by Alex Telles.
But the discomfort of the Botafogo fans lasted until the second half, when José Kadir’s star began to shine. In the 12th minute, the Panamanian striker left everything even on the scoreboard. Danilo made an elevated pass and the 18-year-old crossed the ball to beat goalkeeper Gabriel.
However, the draw was not enough for Alvinegro. And Kadir once again showed that he was having a special night in the 49th minute. After another pass from Danilo, the striker dominated at the edge of the area before releasing a bomb that ended in the corner of Sport’s goal.
