Fortaleza is more alive than ever in the fight to avoid being relegated in the Brazilian Championship. This Wednesday (26), Leão do Pici beat Bragantino 1-0 at the Cícero de Souza Marques Stadium, in Bragança Paulista (SP), in the 36th round of the competition.
Tricolor reached 37 points, two less than Vitória, 16th place and the first club outside the last four positions, the so-called Z4, which defines who will fall to Série B of the Brasileirão in 2026. The team led by Argentine Martin Palermo reached seven games unbeaten, with three wins and four draws in a row.
The Ceará natives still have a delayed game to play, against Atlético-MG, next Sunday (30) at 6:30 pm (Brasília time), at Arena Castelão, in Fortaleza. Depending on the competitors’ results, a new victory could take Leão do Pici out of the relegation zone for the first time since the 10th round.
Massa Bruta parked at 45 points, provisionally in 10th place, but could be overtaken by Corinthians, Atlético-MG and Vasco in the continuation of this round. Despite this, the team from the interior of São Paulo still dreams of a place in the Libertadores. To do this, they hope that Cruzeiro (3rd place) or Fluminense (7th) win the Copa do Brasil, which would open up an eighth place in the continental tournament.
After a first half of some superiority from Bragantino, it was Fortaleza who found the net in the final stage. In the 30th minute, striker Breno Lopes crossed low from the left, midfielder Tomás Pochettino, inside the area, adjusted it and midfielder Lucas Crispim shot. The ball deflected off Adam Bareiro and went out of goalkeeper Cleiton’s reach. It was the Paraguayan center forward’s fifth goal in the last five games.
