Palmeiras are the U-17 2017 Brazil Cup champions! In the fifth edition of the competition, the green and white jersey squad lifted the trophy on Thursday (30) against Corinthians at Pacaembu Stadium. After the Corinthians, or ‘Timão’, side evened the first leg score at 1-0, the match went to a penalty shoot-out in which goalkeeper Lucas Bergantin defended two shots and saw the ‘Verdão’-nicknamed Palmeiras side lift the tournament trophy for the first time.
Even though a draw would secure them the title, Palmeiras began the match with some attacking football and threatened the goal more than Corinthians. At 9 minutes of play, Guilherme Vieira received a cross in the penalty box and had two chances to score. In his last attempt, his diagonal shot was a near miss. At the 18th minute, Esteves made a beautiful free kick from outside the penalty box that goalkeeper Maltos managed to deflect. In the next play, Marcus Meloni dashed along the right side of the field and passed the ball to Alanzinho, who struck a long-distance shot over Corinthians’s goal. In ‘Timão’s’ best chance, Lucas Piton stormed down the left side and finished with a diagonal shot superbly defended by Magrão. In the rebound, two Corinthians players rushed for the ball at the same time, and Giovanny came close to scoring.
After half-time, the ‘Verdão’ team continued its control of the match. Spearheading Palmeiras’s attacks, Alanzinho tried to break into the opponent’s defense in the left side of the field, however, the passes failed to reach the goal. In the 24th minute, on the very first time he touched the ball, Mascarenhas put Corinthians ahead. Following a beautiful through pass by Ronald, Vitinho crossed the ball from the left which the number 20- player pushed into the net, making it 1-0. The match became very close, and Palmeiras struggled to attack successfully. On its best chance, Patrick got rid of the defenders and rolled the ball back. Tomaz shot it without letting it drop, but failed to score. With an aggregate score of 1-1, the match went to a penalty shoot-out.
Penalty shoot-out decides the title
Coach Artur Itiro of Palmeiras decided, as his strategy for the penalty showdown, to change goalkeepers. Magrão was replaced by Lucas Bergantin, who defended shots by Ronald and Mascarenhas, thereby becoming a key player in the ‘Verdão’s’ first-ever title. Alanzinho, Patrick, Luan and Esteves scored for Palmeiras: 4-3.