SAO PAULO (AP) - Fluminense lost 2-1 to rival Vasco da Gama on the day Ronaldinho was introduced to its fans, missing a chance to go top of the Brazilian league.
Ronaldinho was presented to the Fluminense crowd at the Maracana Stadium, but watched the match from the stands. The former Brazil star won’t be playing until next month.
Substitute midfielder Jhon Cley gave Vasco the win with a remarkable long-range shot in the 71st minute. Forward Andrezinho had put Vasco ahead with a header in the 40th, and striker Marcus Junior equalized from inside the area in the 58th.
Fluminense would have become the league leader with a victory, but it remained on 27 points, two behind Atletico Mineiro and Corinthians.
Vasco da Gama remains in relegation zone despite the win, only its third in 14 matches.
Atletico Mineiro had its six-match winning streak snapped by a 1-0 loss to Corinthians at the Itaquerao Stadium in Sao Paulo on Saturday. Corinthians scored with striker Malcom in the 42nd, then held on to the victory. It was the third straight win for Corinthians, and the fifth in the last six matches.
Fourth-place Sport defeated seventh-place Sao Paulo 2-0 in Recife, ending a three-match winless streak. Sao Paulo, which was coming off two wins in a row, had two players sent off near the end - playmaker Paulo Henrique Ganso and striker Luis Fabiano. Sao Paulo’s Colombian coach Juan Carlos Osorio also was sent off after complaining with the referee.
On Sunday, Palmeiras defeated rival Santos 1-0 with a first-half goal by striker Leandro Pereira, winning for the sixth time in seven matches and jumping to sixth in the 20-team standings, only four points behind leader Atletico Mineiro. Paraguay striker Lucas Barrios entered the match late in the second half to make his debut with Palmeiras. Santos, which has lost four of its last five games, moved back into relegation zone after the loss.
In the late matches, two-time defending champion Cruzeiro was held to a 1-1 draw by Avai at the Mineirao Stadium in Belo Horizonte, remaining 12th in the standings, while last-place Joinville drew Ponte Preta 1-1 in Joinville.
In front of more than 50,000 fans at the Maracana on Saturday, Peru striker Paolo Guerrero scored the winning goal in Flamengo’s 1-0 win over fifth-place Gremio, a result that moved the popular Brazilian club farther from relegation zone.
Internacional’s second-stringers managed to beat Goias 2-1 at the Beira-Rio Stadium in Porto Alegre thanks to a late winner by forward Eduardo Sasha. Internacional’s Uruguayan coach Diego Aguirre rested most of the regular starters for the semifinals of the Copa Libertadores. Internacional beat Tigres 2-1 in the first leg 2-1, and the return match is Wednesday in Mexico.
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