Palmeiras takes an important step in Libertadores, and Abel Ferreira warns

Abel Ferreira was satisfied with what he saw palm trees at liberators. Last Wednesday, the 3rd, in a press conference, after the 2-0 victory against Barcelona-EQU, the coach took the opportunity to issue a warning to his players. The Portuguese made a point of projecting qualification for the round of 16 as the team’s main objective and stressed that the victory in Guayaquil was important for Verdão’s continuity in the group stage.

Abel Ferreira made it clear that Palmeiras’ priority is qualifying for the round of 16. After debuting with a defeat to Bolívar, Verdão managed two consecutive victories and was in the vice-leadership of group C. Tied with the same number of points as the Bolivian rivals, the coach still does not think about the first place and made a warning to the squad about the thoughts for the next games in the Libertadores.

“I don’t know what will happen, but the intention is to qualify for the next stage. It was important to add three points here, not decisive, but important to reach Bolívar, who had a massive result. It leaves us with the possibility of qualifying , which is what we want, but it’s game by game“, he stated.

In addition, Abel Ferreira took the opportunity to analyze the match that Palmeiras played in Ecuador. The coach highlighted that the plan came out as predicted days before the match. The coach of Verdão recognized the difficulty of playing in Guayaquil and valued the way the team behaved during the 90 minutes of the game.

“I think it was a game where both teams wanted to win. We have enough experience to understand Libertadores games, and the players too. It is essential to be competitive, but to understand the moments of the game. We don’t just attack in transition. It’s very difficult to come and play here, with the fans, the lawn they are used to, heavy“, he began to explain before finishing that:

“We had to get through those first twenty minutes, then the game was going to tip over for us. In the first half, Palmeiras had more control of the game, creating more opportunities. In the second half, Barcelona, ​​yes, charged. He risked more, and we had to defend, we were smart. In the second half, we used one more weapon that we have, which is the counterattack”, completed.

After the victory against Barcelona-EQU, Palmeiras will now have a 21-day rest until the next Libertadores game. For the South American competition, Verdão will take to the field on May 25, when it will visit Cerro Porteño, in Asunción, Paraguay. The expectation is that Verdão will take an important step towards a place in the round of 16.