Maybe Renato Gaúcho is the one who's right
No coração do futebol sul-americano, onde calendários implacáveis testam a sabedoria dos treinadores tanto quanto os jogadores são testados em campo, Abel Ferreira escolheu a humildade sobre a urgência. Após um empate com o Junior Barranquilla na estreia da Copa Libertadores, o técnico português adiou mentalmente o clássico contra o Corinthians para priorizar o que raramente recebe aplausos: o descanso. É um lembrete de que, nas competições mais longas, a vitória pertence muitas vezes àqueles que sabem quando não lutar.
- Palmeiras saiu da Colômbia com um empate em 1-1 — resultado que salva a viagem, mas não apaga a sensação de uma oportunidade perdida.
- Com o derby contra o Corinthians a apenas quatro dias, a pressão para já pensar no clássico é real e imediata.
- Abel Ferreira resiste à narrativa da urgência, invocando Renato Gaúcho como exemplo de treinador que fez escolhas impopulares de rotação e pode estar certo.
- Sosa, substituto na segunda etapa, foi o ponto de luz da noite — gol, movimentação e energia quando o time mais precisava.
- O verdadeiro adversário, segundo Ferreira, não está em São Paulo: é o calendário, e o técnico aposta que o descanso é a melhor preparação.
Abel Ferreira estava na sala de imprensa na Colômbia com um único pensamento: tirar seus jogadores de campo e deixá-los descansar. O empate por 1-1 com o Junior Barranquilla na estreia da Copa Libertadores ficou para trás rapidamente — o técnico português já olhava para as próximas setenta e duas horas, não para o domingo.
Quando perguntado sobre o clássico contra o Corinthians pelo Brasileirão, Ferreira não desviou. Citou Renato Gaúcho, técnico do Vasco, que havia ficado no Rio enquanto sua equipe jogava com reservas na Copa Sul-Americana na Argentina — um empate sem gols e uma declaração clara de prioridades. "Talvez, no final, Renato Gaúcho seja o que está certo", disse Ferreira, num raro momento de humildade entre pares.
O empate em Barranquilla foi salvo por Sosa, que entrou no intervalo no lugar de Mauricio e transformou o ataque do Palmeiras. Com movimentação diferente, profundidade e energia crescente conforme López cansava, Sosa marcou o gol de empate e criou chances para os companheiros. Arias também teve oportunidades, mas o segundo gol não veio.
Ferreira elogiou os instintos de Sosa, mas sua mensagem real era outra. O clássico viria, o Brasileirão cobraria sua parte — mas primeiro, os jogadores precisavam descansar. Numa cidade onde derbies nunca são apenas jogos, era uma escolha que exigia convicção. E Ferreira a fez sem hesitar.
Abel Ferreira sat in the press room in Colombia on Wednesday night with a single priority on his mind: getting his players off their feet. Palmeiras had just drawn 1-1 with Junior Barranquilla in their Copa Libertadores opener, and the Portuguese coach was already thinking about the recovery that would follow, not the Corinthians derby waiting four days away in São Paulo.
When reporters asked about Sunday's match in the Brasileirão, Ferreira didn't dodge the question. Instead, he offered a candid reflection on the demands of continental football and the choices managers face when juggling two competitions. He even invoked Renato Gaúcho, Vasco's coach, as an example of someone making the hard calls about squad rotation. Gaúcho had stayed home in Rio while Vasco played their Copa Sudamericana opener in Argentina on Tuesday, fielding a reserve lineup in a 0-0 draw. It was a statement about priorities, and Ferreira seemed to be saying he understood the logic.
"My concern right now is rest," Ferreira said. "Recovery. Sometimes we question the choices other coaches make, but maybe—at the end of it all—Renato Gaúcho is the one who's right." It was a moment of professional humility, an acknowledgment that the calendar was the real opponent, not any team on the pitch.
The draw itself had been salvaged by a substitution. Sosa came on at halftime for Mauricio and changed the shape of Palmeiras' attack. Where Mauricio preferred to build play through the middle, Sosa moved differently, creating space and finding depth. When López tired—and the Colombian forward had run hard—Sosa's energy became essential. He scored the equalizer and created chances for teammates. Arias had opportunities too, but Palmeiras couldn't find the second goal that would have made the night feel less like a missed chance.
Ferreira praised Sosa's instincts and movement, the way he'd read the game and made himself useful in multiple ways. But the coach's real message was elsewhere. He wasn't thinking about the scoreline or the performance. He was thinking about the next seventy-two hours, about ice baths and sleep and the fragile state of a squad that would need to be whole again by Sunday.
The derby against Corinthians would come. The Brasileirão would demand its due. But first, Ferreira would rest his players. It was a choice that required conviction, especially in a city where derbies are never just matches. Yet here was a coach saying that sometimes the wisest decision is to step back, to trust recovery over preparation, to let Renato Gaúcho—a man who'd made the same choice—be vindicated by time.
Citações Notáveis
My concern right now is rest. Recovery. Sometimes we question the choices other coaches make, but maybe at the end of it all, Renato Gaúcho is the one who's right.— Abel Ferreira, Palmeiras coach
Sosa entered very well in the game. He makes movements different from Mauricio. He scored, created for teammates, but we lacked the detail to finish.— Abel Ferreira, on substitute Sosa's performance
A Conversa do Hearth Outra perspectiva sobre a história
Why invoke Renato Gaúcho specifically? What was Ferreira really saying?
He was defending a decision he hadn't made yet but was clearly considering. By naming Gaúcho, he was saying: look, a respected coach just did this, and maybe he saw something we're all missing.
Which is what?
That you can't play everyone, everywhere, all the time. The body breaks. The mind breaks. Sometimes you have to choose between winning now and being able to compete later.
But a derby is sacred in Brazilian football. Doesn't that change the calculus?
It should, maybe. But Ferreira was saying it doesn't. Or it shouldn't. The Copa Libertadores is a continental trophy. The derby is pride. Both matter, but only one of them can have your best players at full strength.
So he's already thinking about who sits out on Sunday?
Almost certainly. He's laying the groundwork now, preparing the narrative. When the lineup comes out, people will remember this press conference and understand why.
Is that cynical?
No. It's honest. He's telling you the truth before you're ready to hear it.