Last month, football legend Hernán Crespo rejoined Brazilian side São Paulo as head coach, having previously managed the side in 2021. Two stints in the Middle East later, the former Argentine striker is back in Brazil.
The 50-year old’s second reign in charge got off to a difficult start, with a 2-0 defeat away to Flamengo. One of the hardest games he could have got to start off with.
This was then followed up by a 2-2 draw away to RB Bragantino, but Crespo’s side really should have won that game. They had five big chances to their host’s one, and with better finishing would have comfortably ran out winners.
Well, as they say – third time lucky – and São Paulo got the win in Crespo’s third game in charge, with a 2-0 at home to Corinthians thanks to a quickfire Luciano brace just after the hour mark. It was a very dominant display, and could have been more than two by the end.
As it stands, São Paulo are currently 13th in the Brasileiro, one place and one point below the Copa Sudamericana spots. They will face Juventude and Fluminense in the next week before they face Athletico Paranaense in the Copa de Brasil.
To make the win over Corinthians even more impressive, Crespo was without Oscar from the quarter hour mark after he went off injured, and Lucas Moura who missed the game completely through injury.
Although he was only São Paulo manager for eight months during his previous spell, Crespo did take charge of 57 games in that time, so he has a reasonable amount of experience to learn from any previous mistakes.
Whilst plenty has changed since his first stint – Miranda was playing in his final game in October 2021 – it is poetic that Luciano – the two goal hero last night – played 90 minutes that night against Cuiaba.
It will be interesting to see how the Argentine legend does from here. São Paulo have a minimum of 27 games to play this season, and potentially several more depending on progression in cup competitions, so there will be plenty of chances for Crespo to prove himself.
During his first spell in Brazil, he won the Campeonato Paulista. He also won the Copa Sudamericana with Defensa y Justicia in 2020, a domestic treble in Qatar with Al-Duhail in 2023, and the AFC Champions League with Al Ain in 2024.
The CONMBEOL Libertadores is the South American equivalent of the AFC Champions League, so it is encouraging that he has shown he is capable of winning a major continental title, even if the general quality is lower.
Just in general too, he has clearly shown that, wherever he goes as manager, trophies tend to follow. At a club the size of São Paulo, the expectation will be to do exactly that, so let’s see how things go.
