Ponte Preta suffers ninth defeat in 11 games; player ratings reveal defensive lapses

Nine losses in eleven matches is not a rough patch—it is a structural failure
Ponte Preta's collapse extends across every position and level of decision-making, from goalkeeper to coach.
Mark

Nine losses in eleven games—at what point does this stop being bad luck and become something else?

Mimi

When you look at the ratings, you see it's not one thing. The goalkeeper makes a critical error. The defense doesn't organize. The midfield doesn't control the ball. The forwards don't finish. It's everywhere at once.

Mark

But the coach got a 4. That's lower than most of the players. What does that tell you?

Mimi

It tells you the problem isn't just execution. It's the plan itself. If the team is being set up correctly and the players are still failing, that's one conversation. But when the coach's rating is that low, it means the tactical approach isn't working.

Mark

Is there any bright spot here? Bryan Borges scored, and he got a 6.

Mimi

He scored the goal that made it 2-1, which at least gave the team something to show for the effort. But one goal in a loss doesn't change the larger picture. You need consistency, and this team has shown none.

Mark

What happens next? Can this be fixed?

Mimi

That depends on whether the club is willing to make real changes. You can't have nine losses in eleven games and expect the same approach to suddenly work. Something has to give—either the coach, or a significant shift in how the team is being organized.

  • A derrota para o Athletic não foi um acidente isolado: foi a nona em onze jogos, transformando o fracasso em padrão reconhecível.
  • O goleiro Diogo Silva protagonizou o momento mais simbólico da partida ao palmear a bola diretamente para um adversário no primeiro gol, um erro que condensou a fragilidade coletiva do time.
  • Nenhum setor do time escapou ileso — defesa, meio-campo e ataque receberam notas entre 4 e 6, sinalizando uma crise que não poupa posição nem função.
  • O técnico Rodrigo Santana recebeu nota 4, a mais baixa entre os titulares, indicando que as falhas ultrapassam os jogadores e alcançam o próprio modelo de jogo adotado.
  • A Ponte Preta não enfrenta apenas uma má fase: enfrenta um colapso estrutural que exige respostas urgentes antes que a temporada se torne irrecuperável.

Há momentos no esporte em que os resultados deixam de ser surpresa e passam a ser confirmação. A Ponte Preta, clube de longa tradição no futebol brasileiro, acumula nove derrotas em onze jogos na temporada, o mais recente deles um revés de 2 a 1 diante do Athletic na abertura da Série B. O que se observa não é apenas uma sequência de tropeços, mas o retrato de uma instituição que parece ter perdido o fio condutor entre intenção e execução — do goleiro ao técnico, do campo à comissão.

O padrão tornou-se inconfundível. A Ponte Preta perdeu mais uma vez — agora para o Athletic, por 2 a 1, em Minas Gerais, na abertura da Série B. Foi a nona derrota em onze jogos, uma sequência tão consistente no fracasso que já não parece azar: parece rotina.

A partida contou uma história conhecida. O goleiro Diogo Silva cometeu erro decisivo no primeiro gol adversário, palmeirando a bola para o meio da área onde um jogador do Athletic aguardava. Silva terminou com nota 5, reflexo não apenas daquele lance, mas da fragilidade geral de uma defesa que pareceu convidar a pressão em vez de resistir a ela. David Braz foi o melhor da linha defensiva com 5,5 — distinção modesta num setor que operou sem confiança nem organização.

No meio-campo, o cenário foi igualmente sombrio. Murilo Cavalcante e Tárik receberam 4,5, enquanto Bryan Borges, autor do único gol da Ponte Preta, alcançou apenas 6 — respeitável por comparação, mas longe de inspirador. No ataque, Willian Pottker e Jonathan Cafú ficaram com 5, e Brandão, que deveria ser ameaça ofensiva, rendeu apenas 4,5. Os substitutos que entraram ao longo da partida receberam notas 4, sem trazer melhora perceptível.

A responsabilidade alcançou também a comissão técnica. O treinador Rodrigo Santana recebeu nota 4 — a mais baixa entre os avaliados —, sinal de que as falhas não se limitam à execução individual, mas refletem um time que não está sendo preparado para vencer. Nove derrotas em onze jogos não são um tropeço passageiro: são uma falha estrutural, e as notas desta derrota apenas tornaram essa realidade mais concreta.

The pattern has become unmistakable. Ponte Preta lost again—this time to Athletic, 2-1, in Minas Gerais on the opening weekend of Brazil's Serie B season. It was the ninth defeat in eleven games, a stretch of results so consistent in its failure that it has stopped feeling like misfortune and started feeling like routine.

The match itself told a familiar story. Diogo Silva, the goalkeeper, made a critical error on Athletic's opening goal, palming the ball directly into the middle of the box where an opponent was waiting. It was the kind of mistake that doesn't require lengthy analysis—a moment of poor judgment that changed the game's trajectory. Silva finished with a rating of 5 out of 10, a score that reflected not just that single play but the broader fragility of a defense that seemed to invite pressure rather than resist it.

The defensive line offered little resistance overall. David Braz emerged as the best of the back four with a 5.5, a modest distinction in a unit that struggled collectively. Lucas Justen and Lucas Cunha both rated 4.5 and 5 respectively, while Kevyson managed a 5. These were not numbers suggesting a unit playing with confidence or organization. In midfield, the picture was similarly bleak. Murilo Cavalcante and Tárik both earned 4.5, while Bryan Borges, who did score Ponte Preta's lone goal in an attempt to equalize, still only rated a 6—respectable by comparison but hardly inspiring.

The attacking players fared no better. Willian Pottker and Jonathan Cafú both received 5s, while Brandão, who should have been a source of offensive threat, managed only 4.5. The substitutes who entered the match—Diego Porfírio, David da Hora, Baianinho, and Luis Felipe—all received 4s, suggesting that fresh legs brought no improvement in execution or tactical clarity. Elvis, the midfielder who came on despite being out of form, at least managed a 5, having provided some marginal improvement to the team's control of the middle of the field.

The responsibility extended to the technical staff. Coach Rodrigo Santana received a rating of 4, the lowest mark on the sheet aside from the substitutes. This was not a casual criticism. It signaled that the tactical approach, the in-game adjustments, the overall direction of the team—all of it had fallen short. When a coach's rating matches or trails the lowest-performing players, it suggests that the problem runs deeper than individual execution. It suggests a team that is not being set up to succeed.

Ponte Preta's collapse across eleven games has now created a crisis that extends across every position and every level of decision-making. The goalkeeper is making errors. The defense is porous. The midfield is not controlling play. The forwards are not creating or finishing. And the man responsible for organizing all of it is not finding solutions. Nine losses in eleven matches is not a rough patch—it is a structural failure, and the ratings that followed this particular defeat only made that reality more concrete.

The pattern has become unmistakable—losses have stopped feeling like misfortune and started feeling like routine
— Match analysis
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