Pressure on Cuca: What’s Happening at Santos?

Hey, folks! Let’s talk a bit about the complicated moment Santos has been facing lately, shall we? Yes, the team’s defensive approach at the end of the match against Atlético-MG, as well as elimination on penalties in the Copa Sul-Americana, has generated a lot of pressure on coach Cuca.

Criticism from the fans and support from the club board

The fans weren’t at all happy with Cuca’s decision to give up on attacking in the final minutes of the match at Arena MRV, on Wednesday night, 16. The substitutions made by the coach led to a very defensive lineup: 5-4-1, which featured the following players:

• Gabriel Brazão
• Igor Vinícius
• Lucas Veríssimo
• Willian Arão
• João Ananias
• Escobar
• João Schmidt
• Christian Oliva
• Arthur
• Gabriel Bontempo
• Gabigol

This strategy allowed Atlético-MG to dominate the game until, at 47 minutes of the second half, they scored a goal that sent the decision to penalties. Unfortunately, Santos couldn’t do well in the shootout and was eliminated, losing by 4 to 2 in regulation time and 4 to 4 on aggregate.

For part of the fanbase, the blame for the elimination fell entirely on Cuca, who saw the dream of the only title Santos had a chance to win this season fall apart. The club hierarchy, however, disagrees with that view and continues to back the coach.

What does the board think?

According to the directors, the team has been showing improvement, both technically and tactically. Recently, Santos has achieved good results in the Campeonato Brasileiro and has been pulling away from the relegation zone. It’s curious that they didn’t even find it necessary to discuss replacing the coach when the team was both inside and outside the relegation zone.

The elimination in the Sul-Americana is seen as a frustration, but not as sufficient grounds for a hasty dismissal. Strangely, some similarities between Cuello’s goal and the famous goal by Breno Lopes in the Libertadores final of 2020 were considered only a coincidence—not a punishment for retreating in defense.

What’s coming up?

To ease the mood after this tense stretch, Cuca will lead the team in the match against Remo this Saturday (19), in Belém, in the Brasileirão. The board believes that a win, along with the calendar break for Data Fifa, will be enough to calm things down and bring back stability.

And so, how do you think Santos will do in this next match? Leave your opinion in the comments!