It took Palmeiras seven minutes to make their intentions clear. Flaco López laid the ball off, Vitor Roque kept it alive, and Maurício swept home with his left foot to open the scoring at Arena Barueri on Sunday night. By the final whistle, a 2–1 victory over São Paulo had secured Palmeiras’ place in a seventh consecutive Paulistão final — a club record and a streak matched only by Santos’ eight between 2009 and 2016.
Palmeiras Dominate the First Half
Abel Ferreira’s side pressed high from the start, suffocating São Paulo’s build-up play and exploiting the gaps with pace and movement. The visitors, missing Danielzinho’s creativity in midfield with Luan starting in his place, relied on long balls that went nowhere. They looked heavier, slower, and a step behind in every phase.
Palmeiras should have doubled their lead before halftime. Piquerez raced onto a through ball from Vitor Roque on the left flank but fired across goal and wide, drawing a furious reaction from Ferreira on the touchline. Despite the miss, Palmeiras ended the half with ten shots to São Paulo’s four.
Flaco López Extends, Calleri Responds
Hernán Crespo introduced Danielzinho at the break, and São Paulo improved. But just as the visitors found rhythm, Palmeiras struck again. Andreas Pereira whipped in a rehearsed free kick, Piquerez crossed, and Flaco López finished from close range in the 56th minute to make it 2–0.
The match appeared settled until Marlon Freitas gifted São Paulo a lifeline. The veteran midfielder caught Bobadilla’s neck with an arm inside the box, and referee Daiane Muniz pointed to the spot. Calleri converted to cut the deficit to 2–1, briefly reviving São Paulo’s hopes.
Refereeing Chaos
Muniz’s performance drew complaints from both camps throughout. She waved away São Paulo’s earlier claim for a handball against Gustavo Gómez in the box, got laterals and free kicks wrong in both directions, and showed a yellow card to Sabino for a foul committed by Danielzinho — correcting the mistake only after protests. The match lacked VAR, amplifying every disputed call.
Novorizontino Await
São Paulo pushed in the closing minutes but lacked the invention to break Palmeiras down, especially after Ferreira freshened his side with five substitutes including Jhon Arias, Ramón Sosa, and Felipe Anderson. The result extended Palmeiras’ unbeaten run against São Paulo to 11 matches and their winning streak in the Choque-Rei to five.
The final pits Palmeiras against Novorizontino, the small-city club from the interior that eliminated Corinthians 1–0 on Saturday. Founded in 2010, Novorizontino are chasing their first state title; Palmeiras are hunting their 27th, four short of Corinthians’ all-time record. The two-legged decider begins Wednesday at Arena Barueri and concludes Sunday at Novorizontino’s Estádio Jorge Ismael de Biasi, where the hosts hold home advantage thanks to the tournament’s best overall campaign. Abel Ferreira, contesting his sixth Paulistão final, knows the math: David has home court, and Goliath must win away from home to lift the trophy.