Brasileirão In Focus: Coritiba

Back in the Brasileirão after a year down in Série B, a Coxa are in the form of their lives, having broken the Brazilian record for the most consecutive victories (24). They made light work of the Série B last year, coasted to the trophy in the Campeonato Paranaense, and they crushed Palmeiras 6-0 in a historic first leg of the Copa do Brasil quarter final. These results and their attractive style have inspired certain people to refer to them as ‘the Barcelona of South America’.

They have formed a really good unit, everyone pulling their weight and playing for the team. They are organized, good on the counter and dangerous at set-pieces. They play in what looks like a standard Brazilian 4-2-2-2, but with a couple of alterations. Between the two attacking midfielders Davi and Rafinha, the former operates more in the middle in a number nine role, whilst Rafinha drifts out to either flank and pushes up to attack. The two forwards Anderson Aquino and Bill do something similar, with Bill staying in the centre, and Anderson Aquino drifting out to either side and sometimes dropping back in to midfield. (see diagram)

In the transfer market they adopted an interesting tactic, signing several fringe players from higher reputation clubs. This has worked out superbly, as they have managed to get a hold of a crop of talented, experienced and extremely motivated individuals. Defensive midfielder Léo Gago has proved to be a fabulous addition to the side, he was on loan at the side last season from Vasco and Coritiba will be delighted that they have managed to tie him down to a permanent contract. A good athletic player, does the simple stuff well but also provides a threat going forward, one to watch out for this year.

Several people will have their eyes on Marcelo Oliveira’s side this season, and I do not think they will be disappointed. This is a motivated team who will be looking to establish themselves amongst the top sides in the league. It might be a little too early for them this year, but I would not be at all surprised if they ended up in the top half of the table and with a Copa Sulamericana spot.

Expected formation:

Brasileirão In Focus: Atlético-PR

The fact that they are currently being overshadowed by their city rivals Coritiba is not necessarily a bad thing for Atlético Paranaense. O Furacão (the hurricane) had a very impressive campaign in last year’s Brasileirão, going under the radar for the whole season and finishing in 5th place, missing out on a Copa Libertadores place by only three points.

New manager Adilson Batista has tried his best to hold together the nucleus of last year’s side, and new director of football Alfredo Ibiapina has promised to spare no expense to improve the squad. Some important players left the club at the end of last season, winger Maikon Leite returned to Santos at the end of his loan deal, centre back Rhodolfo was snapped up by São Paulo, defensive midfielder Chico joined Palmeiras, centre forward Bruno Mineiro joined Sport Recife, and 21 year old goalkeeper Neto got a big money move to Fiorentina in Italy.

There have been some good signings, with World Cup winner and ex-Manchester United midfielder Kléberson signing from Flamengo, former Atlético Madrid midfielder Cleber Santana arriving on loan from São Paulo and Robston joining from Atlético Goianiense. These are impressive names for a club of o Furacão’s size, but the fear is that the players that have left have not been sufficiently replaced yet. The directors are still on the hunt for new recruits however, and by the time you read this they may have improved the squad further.

Atlético are a team with more quality than some may realise. Their defence is strong, centre back Manoel in particular is a very talented player, only 21 years old, but with bags of technique and maturity. In front of him, o Furacão have a wealth of choices in the defensive midfield position, and it is such an important position in the Brazilian domestic game. Besides new signings Kléberson, Cleber Santana, Robston and Paulo Roberto, they also have Fransérgio, Deivid, Wendel and Guilherme, all relevant options with something to give to the team.

36 year old Paulo Baier is still o Furacão's primary creative force.

Despite having a team full of youth, potential and secure defensive capabilities, Atlético’s key player comes in the shape of a 36 year old veteran playmaker who goes by the name of Paulo Baier, a wonderful player with great awareness, superb vision and an astounding range of passes. He is also deadly from set-pieces (corner kicks in particular) and is the focal point of almost every Atlético attack. The fact that he never won a national championship in Brazil is a mystery to me, but that’s a story for another day.

The only area where Atlético appear to be lagging behind their peers is up front. The now departed Bruno Mineiro performed an important role for o Furacão last season, and in his absence they seem to lack a central goalscoring figure. The current first choice is Ecuadorian forward Joffre Guerrón, who certainly has talent, but appears to lack the ability to play as a central forward in a 4-5-1, often getting lost and isolated during the game. They have another option in Adaílton, but he seems to suffer from a similar problem. However the apparent emergence of squad player Federico Nieto may be cause for celebration, the huge Argentine front-man has performed well in recent substitute appearances, scoring some important goals.

For the start of the season, I expect Adilson Batista to go with a formation that exclusively plays to the strengths of o Furacão, which means three defensive midfielders and Paulo Baier in a playmaker role. In recent games they have lined up in a 4-3-2-1/4-3-1-2 formation, and I would guess that they will go with the former when they start against Atlético Mineiro at the weekend.

Expected Formation: