Sep 26, 2024, 10:44 p.m. ET
Cruzeiro will play against Lanús in its first semifinal of the Conmebol Sudamericanaafter completing the procedure at the Mineirão and draw 1-1 this Thursday against Libertad of Paraguay that was only resurrected at the end, when he found himself in superiority after the expulsion of Argentine Lucas Romero.
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In the debut on the bench of former coach Fernando Diniz, the Brazilian team, which had just won 0-2 in Asunción, seemed to bury any attempt at rebellion with Kaio Jorge’s goal in the 13th minutebut ended up locked in their area by the Paraguayans.
After a terrible first half, Libertad, led by Argentine Daniel Garnero, woke up from its lethargy with the entry of the eternal Roque Santa Cruz, who scored the tying goal in the 72nd minute, when they were already with one more man.
Cruzeiro did not have to work too hard to take the lead. Almost in the first dangerous approach, Kaio Jorge took advantage of a pinpoint center from Marlon to head the wrong way to the Uruguayan goalkeeper Martín Silva and score the first.
The young forward is beginning to find his feet on his return to Brazil, after a frustrated and brief spell at Juventus Turin. There are already three goals in the season, two of them in the Sudamericana.
The field continued to lean in favor of the celestial club. Marlon and William advanced on the sides, as did Gabriel Veron and Lautaro Díaz between the lines, who almost went wide in a quick transition led by Romero.
By then Cruzeiro, a two-time Libertadores champion in the process of recovering the brilliance of yesteryear, had decided to give way to Libertad, who only circulated the leather like a pendulum without major consequences.
At half-time, Garnero opted to gain experience on the Mineirão pitch and brought out the historic striker Roque Santa Cruz. The team noticed it for the better.
Libertad stepped deeper into the area and put Cássio to work. Cruzeiro was also responsible for giving him a survival with Romero’s expulsion for a double yellow in the 60th minute.
The Asunción team then began to control the game. Santa Cruz hit the post from a corner and sent the next shot into the back of the net with a flat header after a cross from Iván Ramírez.
Cássio then saved a point-blank shot from Héctor Villalba that left more than one with the threat of a heart attack.
But Cruzeiro weathered the storm and held the tie until the end to return to the semifinals of a continental tournament fifteen years later.
