Less São Paulo-Boca Than In The Libertadores?

The São Paulo Coach and his Captain are making no bones about the Sudamericana match against Boca Juniors being less of a clash of titans than if the fixture was being played for the more prestigious Libertadores Cup…

Number 1 Rogério Ceni, the main star of the Tricolor Paulista who almost reached the 1000 minute unbeaten mark but was foiled in injury time during the recent Clássico derby against Santos , would prefer a Libertadores clash between the two greats.

“Whenever we meet Boca and São Paulo play great games. It’s just a shame that this isn’t for the Libertadores, but hopefully we’ll meet in the next tournament”, explained the veteran before flying to Buenos Aires. The Copa Sudamericana is seen very much in the same vein as the UEFA Cup: a decaffeinated alternative to a better Cup.

Rogério Ceni underlined that “If it were a Libertadores clash we’d really see what both sides are capable of, but we have to also think about our domestic campaigns and this competition, to be fair, just isn’t at the same level”, he added. Last year São Paulo and Boca Juniors met with the Argentines winning the South American SuperCup 4-3 on aggregate at Morumbi.

Coach Muricy Ramalho is expected to rest some of his habitual first eleven for the upcoming Brasileirão clash against Figueirense at Morumbi, despite having a nine-point edge over second-placed Cruzeiro. “I think the coaching staff will be rotating a few players as we want to win in Argentina but need the three points against Figueirense”, explained midfielder Jorge Wagner.

The Morumbi team headed down with 20 players that didn’t include new reinforcements Danilo Silva and Zé Luís, as well as seleção centre-back Alex Silva, recovering from a muscle strain. Hugo, who received four and a half months of suspension in domestic competition for spitting at a rival, is expected to be fielded as the ban doesn’t cover the Sudamericana.