TFT Issue 3983!

I’m inclined to believe that Botafogo will not continue their heroic start to their Serie A campaign. Four wins from four is mightily impressive, considering that they’ve defeated Sao Paulo, Bahia, Flamengo, and Atletico Mineiro along the way, each of which presents different challenges. Indeed, an argument could be made for Flamengo being Brazil’s best team, and they defeated them away from home in a local Rio de Janeiro derby. Botafogo certainly are flying at the moment, even if it’s not something that’s destined to last.

They’ve juggled their continental commitments quite well thus far, and luckily their last Copa Sudamericana match was at home against Ecuador’s Liga de Quito, meaning no travel time of note. They’re confident, working hard, and causing problems for each opponent on a regular basis. There’s a lot to like about what they’ve done, and although I freely admit that them making it five from five here is a bit of a stretch for a team of their standing, I’m not really seeing a reason to doubt them.

With Tche Tche and Carlos Eduardo running the midfield, and Tiquinho up front in form, Botafogo are a handful. No, they’re not a superior team to Corinthians but they sure do look it at the moment. I like their energy, they’ve got momentum, they’re at home, and they’re facing the perfect kind of team in the sense that Corinthians never work very hard. Botafogo should not struggle to overwhelm them, and I’d like to think that’d result in them grinding out a win.

Corinthians are typically disappointing this season. As ever, they’ve got some superb individuals but they seldom shine in this setup because the Sao Paulo heavyweights are soulless. The potential is there for them to succeed, but the reality is that they look a long, long way from being a ‘team’.

I mean, I can pick holes in the lesser issues in the squad, if you’d like? Renato Augusto being injured denies them a midfield controller, for example. Vera’s arrival in midfield ensures that they’re combative and powerful but not creative; they miss Augusto. Their defence is looking its age now, largely because they’re having to rely heavily upon it due to not producing ‘team’ showings. They’ve only got two attackers that cause any problems – Alberto and Guedes – and they’re having to do it all by themselves at the moment. That’s the lesser issues, or at least some of them.

The big issue is simply that they’re not a unit. They don’t have togetherness. They don’t look like winning, even when they do. What’ve they done over the past few weeks – defeated part-timers Remo in the Copa do Brasil on penalties, and beaten newly-promoted Cruzeiro at home? That’s it. Everybody else has had the measure of them, and high-flying Botafogo should not be an exception here.

Therefore, much as though I find it comical that Botafogo could be about to win five on the spin, the home win is very appealing at 19/20 at this moment in time.