The race for the Brazilian Championship is set to go down the wire. After an impressive run of nine consecutive victories, Internacional finally dropped points and also failed to score in a game for the first time since mid-December, 2020.
Athletico-PR welcomed a Colorado side who were in perhaps the form of their lives.
Contrary to what one would have expected, it was the home side that dominated. In fact, Internacional were lucky to take home a point.
For emphasis to the above, Athletico-PR had 12 total attempts in the game, with four of them being on target. On the other hand, Inter only had a solitary effort on target from five attempts.
Athletico-PR dominated for large parts of the game and their 69% possession at Arena da Baixada was proof to that.
It could have been a different story altogether if things went another way. It won’t be wrong to say Athletico deserved to win the game and Cittadini even saw his effort hid the woodwork within the first 20 minutes.
However, Inter did just enough to keep their goal intact and settle for a crucial point after 90 minutes.
In terms of the title race, the result makes things more interesting. With second-placed Flamengo beating rivals Vasco also on Thursday night, only a mere two points now separates the top two teams.
It means Inter could find themselves in danger of losing their leadership position if they falter in their next match.
Athletico-PR are now unbeaten in their last three games and look to keep the momentum when they take on Corinthians next Wednesday.
Internacional will be fully motivated to return to winning ways. For their next outing, they take on a Sport Recife side who have only one win in their last five outings, losing the remainng four. Without a doubt, Inter are favorites to win that fixture.
