Teixeira escapes investigation

CBF President Ricardo Teixeira has escaped a judicial investigation into allegations of bribery following on from reports last week. On Tuesday, a court in Rio threw out a move made by the Federal Ministry of Public Affairs in 2008. Teixeira's lawyers had previously succeeded in delaying a decision on the process. This means that the Brazilian football chief will not be charged in Brazil with relation to allegations made on a BBC Panorama programme last week that he had received illegal payments from FIFA's defunct marketing partner ISL.


Teixeira received a hostile reception at awards

Teixeira is a member of the FIFA Executive Committee that last week controversially voted to award the 2018 and 2022 World Cups to Russia and Qatar respectively.

On Monday, Teixeira was booed as he came on stage to present an award at Monday's 'Craque do Ano' (player of the year) ceremony in São Paulo.

Fluminense's midfielder Conca was named the Brazilian Championship's player of the year as was widely expected and also picked up the prestigious Bola de Ouro (Golden Ball) from Placar Magazine. The Argentine received a further boost on Tuesday when Argentina manager Sergio Batista said that the 27 year old had attracted his attention.

'I am keeping an eye on him. I've known him since he was in River Plate's youth ranks and he's always been a very interesting player. He's playing at a high level and that's why we have to follow him.' Batista told the Argentine sports newspaper Olé.


Conca with his awards

Conca's team-mate Mariano was named as right back in the Championship's team of the year. Santos' young Brazil international Neymar was selected up front along with league top scorer Jonas of Grêmio. Veteran Roberto Carlos was named as left back after his return to Brazil with Corinthians.

The full team as follows

Goalkeeper: Fábio, Cruzeiro
Centre back: Miranda, São Paulo
Centre back: Dedé, Vasco da Gama
Left back: Roberto Carlos, Corinthians
Right back: Mariano, Fluminense
Defensive midfielder: Elias, Corinthians
Defensive midfielder: Jucilei, Corinthians
Attacking midfielder: Conca, Fluminense
Attacking midfielder: Montillo, Cruzeiro
Striker: Neymar, Santos
Striker: Jonas, Grêmio

Manager: Muricy Ramalho, Fluminense

Fluminense seal title with 1-0 win

Fluminense won their first Brazilian Championship for 26 years amidst jubilant scenes at the Engenhão stadium in Rio on Sunday. A goal from striker Emerson after 61 minutes was enough to give Flu a nervy 1-0 win over relegated Guarani. Fellow title contenders Cruzeiro came from behind to beat Palmeiras 2-1 at home to keep the title in the balance right up to the final whistle. Corinthians' title hopes ended with a 1-1 draw at Goiás, which saw them fall to third in the final table despite having led only two weeks ago.

Emerson (centre) celebrates the goal that won the league title.

Flu had much the better of possession in the first half but created few clear chances against a determined Guarani side. 40,000 expectant home fans grew ever more nervous and this clearly started to show in the play of their heroes the longer the game remained scoreless. The 0-0 scoreline at halftime was not in the script. The tension was relieved 16 minutes into the 2nd half. Carlinhos's cross from the left was met by a scuffed header from Washington which fell for Emerson to volley through the goalkeeper's legs from six yards out. On course for the title, Flu avoided the temptation of playing recklessly during the final half hour. The home side played cautiously and while they had few chances to extend their lead, Guarani rarely threatened to spoil the party. The final whistle was met with a massive outpouring of joy from the home fans but there was no pitch invasion in contrast to other recent title celebrations. Highlights here http://sportv.globo.com/videos/v/melhores-momentos-de-fluminense-1-x-0-guarani-pela-38-rodada-do-brasileiro-2010/1387670/#/Futebol/Campeonatos Nacionais/Brasileirão Série A/page/1

Coach Muricy Ramalho claimed his fourth Brazilian title in five years adding to the three he won with São Paulo. After the match he claimed that he had played a large part in his side's success.

'I always say that the manager doesn't have to interfere a lot. However, this team needed me and I gave everything to it.'

 His side deserve the title for being the consistently the most complete and best organised side throughout the season. His team built mainly around the talents of experienced players like Washington, Fred, Deco and in particular Conca, has not always been the most entertaining but have played the most effective football. With few young starlets it is possible that his team won't be broken up as quickly as other recent champions.

Cruzeiro finished second after they came from behind to beat Palmeiras 2-1 with goals from Henrique and Wallyson. Highlights here http://sportv.globo.com/videos/v/melhores-momentos-de-cruzeiro-2-x-1-palmeiras-pela-38-rodada-do-brasileiro-2010/1387710/#busca=cruzeiro

Corinthians fell from second to third in the final table as they could only draw 1-1 away to Goiás. Felipe Amorim for Goiás and Dentinho both scored in the first half. 3rd place means that Corinthians will now need to take part in the preliminary round of next year's Copa Libertadores while Cruzeiro go straight to the group stage. Highlights here.
http://globoesporte.globo.com/jogo/brasileirao2010/05-12-2010/goias-corinthians.html


Beneath the title chasers Grêmio secured a comfortable 3-0 win at home to Botafogo in the fourth place decider.The goals came from Douglas, Andre Lima and Jonas. With his goal, Jonas finished as the league's top scorer with 23 goals. It caps a remarkable turnaround for Grêmio since Renato Gaúcho took over as manager halfway through the season when they were in the relegation zone. They will qualify for next season's Libertadores provided that Independiente defeat Goiás in the final of the Copa Sulamericana. See the goals here http://sportv.globo.com/videos/v/os-gols-de-gremio-3-x-0-botafogo-pela-38-rodada-do-brasileiro-2010/1387718/#/Futebol/page/1

In the relegation decider Atlético Goianense drew 0-0 away to Vitória in Salvador. The draw was enough for Atlético to survive and condemn their hosts to life in Serie B next season. Goiás, Guarani and Grêmio Prudente were condemned to relegation before today. Last season's champions, Flamengo eventually finished in 14th just two points above the drop zone in what has been an underwhelming season for Brazil's most popular club. 


Final table

Rnk↓		Team	MP	W	D	L	GF	GA	+/-	Pts
1		Fluminense	38	20	11	7	62	36	26	71
2		Cruzeiro	38	20	9	9	53	38	15	69
3		Corinthians	38	19	11	8	65	41	24	68
4		Grêmio	38	17	12	9	68	43	25	63
5		Atlético-PR	38	17	9	12	43	45	-2	60
6		Botafogo	38	14	17	7	54	42	12	59
7		Internacional	38	16	10	12	48	41	7	58
8		Santos	38	15	11	12	63	50	13	56
9		São Paulo	38	15	10	13	54	54	0	55
10		Palmeiras	38	12	14	12	42	43	-1	50
11		Vasco da Gama	38	11	16	11	43	45	-2	49
12		Ceará	38	10	17	11	35	44	-9	47
13		Atlético-MG	38	13	6	19	52	64	-12	45
14		Flamengo	38	9	17	12	41	44	-3	44
15		Avaí	38	11	10	17	49	58	-9	43
16		Goianense	38	11	9	18	51	57	-6	42
17		Vitória	38	9	15	14	42	48	-6	42
18		Guarani	38	8	13	17	33	53	-20	37
19		Goiás	38	8	9	21	41	68	-27	33
20		Grêmio Prudente	38	7	10	21	39	64	-25	28

Fluminense set to Conca

Fluminense go into today's last round of matches knowing that a win at home to relegated Guarani will hand them their first national title since 1984. Should they succeed, it will be in no small part due to their attacking midfielder Dario Conca. The 27 year old Argentinian is also favourite to secure the Brazilian player of the year award later this week, the first non Brazilian to do so since Carlos Tevez in 2005.


Key to Fluminense's success, Conca.

Conca came through the youth ranks at River Plate but never established himself in the first team there. He was loaned out to a string of clubs across South America becoming something of a journeyman. Ironically, he caught the attention of Fluminense when he impressed during a loan spell at their Rio rivals Vasco da Gama. Flu signed him for the start of the 2008 season and was part of the team that reached the final of the Copa Libertadores that year. A classical playmaker who possesses the full range of skills, has flourished under Muricy Ramalho. He has weighed in with nine goals of his own during this year's Brazilian Championship as well as being the fulcrum of the team. Surprisingly he has never been called up by his country and perhaps never will be given the depth of talent that Argentina possess in his position. A belated move to Europe is perhaps a greater possibility.

Corinthians and Cruzeiro will be hoping to take advantage should Fluminense fail to win today. I have examined the scenarios below. This is the current league table. Where teams are tied on points, they are separated first on wins then goal difference then goals scored.

Rnk↓		Team	MP	W	D	L	GF	GA	+/-	Pts
1		Fluminense	37	19	11	7	61	36	25	68
2		Corinthians	37	19	10	8	64	40	24	67
3		Cruzeiro	37	19	9	9	51	37	14	66

For Fluminense to win the title

A win over relegated Guarani will hand the Rio club the title regardless of other results. A draw will be enough only if Corinthians and Cruzeiro both fail to win. Should Flu lose, then they would need Corinthians also to lose and Cruzeiro to fail to win.

For Corinthians to win the title

Fluminense must lose or draw for Corinthians to stand any chance of winning the league. A victory for Corinthians away to relegated Goiás would give them the title if Flu draw or lose. A draw would be enough  to hand Corinthians the title on goal difference or goals scored should Cruzeiro fail to win and Flu lose although in an unlikely situation Flu could still take the title if they scored at least three goals in defeat and lost by a margin of one.

For Cruzeiro to win the title

Cruzeiro must win at home to Palmeiras and hope that Fluminense and Corinthians both fail to win to stand any chance of the title. However, any combination of draws and defeats for the other two will give Cruzeiro the title so long as they win. For example, if Cruzeiro win and the other two draw, Cruzeiro and Fluminense would be level on 69 points but Cruzeiro would have more total victories which is the first tie breaker used in this competition. Cruzeiro's chances have been boosted by the fact that Palmeiras manager Luis Felipe Scolari has chosen a reserve team for what is a dead rubber for his midtable side.

Beneath the title chasers, Grêmio host Botafogo in Porto Alegre in a decider for fourth and the final Copa Libertadores place. Botafogo must win to steal the slot in South America's premier club competition in 2011 from the Gremistas.

At the bottom Vitória host Atlético Goiano in Salvador in a decider for the last relegation place. Vitória must win to avoid relegation and send Atlético Goiano into next year's Serie B. A draw would be enough to ensure Atlético's survival.

All matches begin at 5pm Brasilia time, 7pm GMT, 8pm CET, 2pm EST. I will blog later tonight on the outcome.

Teixeira faces new corruption probe on eve of World Cup vote

Ricardo Teixeira, the president of the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) is facing a new investigation into his allegedly corrupt dealings with FIFA's defunct marketing partner ISL according to a report in Wednesday's Folha de São Paulo newspaper.


Teixeira stands accused of receiving kickbacks from ISL

A committee of the Brazilian Congress has alleged that Teixeira's company RLJ received 2.9 million Reais (around $2m US) in bribes from ISL via the Liechtenstein based company SANUD between 1992 and 1997. The Congress committee filed a complaint to the Rio de Janeiro public prosecutor's office in 2008 but Teixeira's lawyers sought habeas corpus which effectively delayed proceedings. Folha de São Paulo reports that  a decision will be made next Tuesday on whether an investigation will proceed.

This follows on from a BBC Panorama documentary broadcasted on Monday that named Teixeira as one of three FIFA executive committee members accused of receiving illegal payments from ISL. The three deny any wrongdoing and claim that they have been exonerated by previous investigations.

The embarassing news for Teixeira comes on the eve of the votes for the 2018 and 2022 World Cup. Teixeira has one of the 24 votes that will decide who will follow Brazil as the hosts of the next two World Cup finals. The man who runs Brazilian football has not publicly revealed his voting intentions but he is believed to favour the joint Spain/Portugal bid for 2018. The Brazilian national team has played two friendlies in Qatar in the past year which may tend to suggest that Teixeira will support the gulf state's claim for 2022.

Originally a lawyer, Teixeira has been in charge of Brazilian football since 1989. He had never worked in football before becoming CBF president but conveniently he was the son in law of then FIFA president João Havelange. He was due to stand down in 2011 but his term was recently extended so that he could oversee Brazil's organisation of the 2014 World Cup, the first to be held in South America since 1978. The coutry's preparations have been dogged by delays and arguments over funding. Earlier this year FIFA general secretary Jerome Valcke claimed, 'It is incredible how behind Brazil is...Many deadlines have gone by and nothing has happened. Brazil is not on the right track.' An investigation into his past business dealings is probably the last thing that Teixeira needs right now.