In a game of two emotions, Vasco took on Goais for their final game of the Brazilian Championship.
Goais had already been relegated beyond doubt but there was slight hope for Vasco moving into the fixture.
If they had won with enough goals and in the hope that Fortaleza lost (which happened), they might have just pulled out one of the best survival stories in a long time.
In the final game for Luxemburgo, the home side claimed a 3-2 victory but it proved to be inconsequential with the grand scheme of their campaign in mind.
Within the first 15 minutes of the game, Argentine Germano Cano already took two shots at goal. The forward eventually got his goal with his third attempt, his 14th league goal of the campaign.
However, Goias would not go down without a fight. Fernandão would go on to turn the match around. The forward equalized ten minutes after before putting his side in the lead just on the stroke of half time
In the second half, it was defender Graca’s turn to bag his own brace and turn the tie back in Vasco’s favour. The defender capitalized on two set piece situations to secure a 3-2 win for Vasco. However, their fate was already sealed and relegation confirmed.
It was a grim end to their campaign and neither players nor coach Vanderlei Luxemburgo spoke to the press after the game despite the win. Luxemburgo also says goodbye to the club who are now in search of a new manager.
Vasco end their campaign in 17th place and suffer the fourth relegation in their history. They finished the season with 41 points; level with 16th placed Fortaleza but missed out on survival due to a more negative goal difference.
