It’s safe to say Palmeiras more than disappointed everyone at the Club World Cup. Much was expected from Abel Ferreira’s side but they didn’t follow the script at all.
To start with, they lost to Mexican outfit Tigres by a 1-0 score-line. A third-place clash against African champions Al-Ahly represented a good chance for silverware but that didn’t materialize as well.
Abel Ferreira put out a different Palmeiras lineup to the one that lost to Tigres in the semifinals. Mayke, Felipe Melo, Patrick de Paula and Willian all started ahead the likes of Marcos Rocha, Danilo, Gabriel Menino and Zé Rafael left.
Palmeiras slightly played better but there was one again shortage of creativity upfront. Both sides could not score after 90 minutes and the game had to be taken to penalties.
Rony, Luiz Adriano and Felipe Melo all wasted their efforts and the talking point was Rony who got trolled after he tried to take a Bruno Fernandes-esque penalty.
With the defeat, Palmeiras became the first Brazilian and South American to finish fourth in the competiton. Inter and Atletico-MG both won their third-place games when they found themselves in similar situations. To go with, Verdão also finished the tournament without a goal as well.
However, Palmeiras will at least receive 2 million dollars for their efforts (about R $ 10.7 million).
It’s straight back to action for Palmeiras who travel back to Brazil on Friday. On Sunday, Verdão will welcome Fortaleza to continue their Brazilian Championship campaign.
Palmeiras are currently in seventh place with 53 points but stand a chance to move further up the table considering they have two games in hand.
