Palmeiras and Santos, the classic rivals from São Paulo, define this Saturday at the emblematic Maracanã the third Brazilian final in the history of the Copa Libertadores, a duel that puts an end to an atypical season marked by the ravages of the coronavirus pandemic.
The 2020 final of the main club tournament in America will be played without an audience at the legendary Rio de Janeiro stadium, witness of Brazil's defeat against Uruguay in the 1950 World Cup and Pelé's thousandth goal in 1969.
The Paulista classic will take place at the Carioca temple, the home of defending champion Flamengo, in the first all-Brazilian decision since 2006, when Internacional defeated Sao Paulo. A year earlier, in 2005, the Paulistas had defeated Athletico Paranaense.
This time, the very even Palmeiras and Santos prevented a rematch of the superclasico that pitted Boca Juniors against River Plate in 2018, with River's victory in Madrid, in the only Argentine final of the competition so far.
Verdao will seek their second copa title, after the one they won in 1999 against the Colombian team Deportivo Cali.
"We worked hard to get here. I can say that we are ready. I can't predict what will happen in the final, I'm not a magician. We know what we have to do, that's our security, our confidence," said Palmeiras' coach Abel Ferreira.
And Peixe aims to become the first four-time Brazilian champion of the Libertadores. Previously, they were crowned champions led by Pelé in 1962 and 1963, and by Neymar in 2011.
"The word fear does not exist. We have to think carefully, in every aspect, mainly in the game strategy," said Santos' coach Alexi Stival "Cuca".
Final with justice
Both teams reached the final justly, which will be the fifth for each one, in a competition that was suspended between March and September due to the outbreak of the pandemic, which affected several players from both teams and their coaches.
Palmeiras is the team with the most points in the tournament (29) and Santos is second (27). The former tarnished their image a bit with a difficult semifinal against River Plate, while the latter dispatched Boca Juniors without major difficulties.
On the way to Maracanã, the green team left behind Delfín (Ecuador), Libertad (Paraguay), and River Plate; the black and white team perhaps had a slightly more difficult path: Liga de Quito, Gremio (Brazil), and Boca Juniors.
Now both are 90 minutes away from glory - or 120, in case of extra time - with a similar recipe but of different origins: a mix of youth development and experience. (D)