The second half is when Palmeiras come alive in their FIFA Club World Cup 2025™ matches. The performances in the latter 45 have been pivotal for the Verdão, as they bagged the goals they were searching for against Al Ahly FC, eventually running out 2-0 winners, and then coming from two goals down against Inter Miami CF to snatch a 2-2 draw and finish top of Group A.
In fact, Palmeiras, who are preparing to face fellow Brazilians Botafogo in the last 16, have scored all four of their goals after the half-time break.
Head coach Abel Ferreira’s side broke the deadlock four minutes after the restart against Al Ahly, before doubling their lead nine minutes later. In their last game of the group stage, against Javier Mascherano’s Inter Miami, two late goals from Paulinho (80’) and Mauricio (87’) saw them pip their opponents in the group table.
As Palmeiras fans will be well-aware, this has been something of a trend this season. In their matches leading up to the Club World Cup, the team from São Paulo had already begun to display a tendency to grow into the game when it really mattered.
Fifteen of their last 20 goals in their ongoing competitions back home (Brasileirao, Copa do Brasil and CONMEBOL Copa Libertadores) have come after Ferreira was able to regroup with his players at the interval.
Those second-half goals enabled the Alviverde to pick up a further four wins, as was the case against Al Ahly in New York New Jersey, and turn a losing position at the halfway stage into a draw against Inter Miami.
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The Verdão’s ability to turn games around in the second half is in large part down to the depth of their squad, with Ferreira aware that he has a bench full of potential game-changers at his disposal.
Aside from the own goal gifted to them by Al Ahly, the other three goals Palmeiras have managed to score at this Club World Cup have all come from second half substitutes.
Flaco Lopez scored his team’s second against the side from Egypt, while Paulinho and Mauricio made the difference on Monday. “What I really like about our team is that we never give up,” said Ferreira shortly after they confirmed their place in the knockout phase. “We fight until the end.”
The last 16 clash with Botafogo will be the latest in a series of decisive meetings between the two clubs over the past few years, with a strong rivalry developing. In 2023, Palmeiras managed to claw back a 14-point lead held by the Glorioso, before pulling off a sensational 4-3 comeback win to steal the Brasileirao title from under their noses.
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Last year, however, Botafogo managed to exact a double dose of revenge. They first knocked Palmeiras out of the Copa Libertadores at the last-16 stage and, putting the icing on the cake, they clinched the league title at the Alviverde’s very own Allianz Parque in a highly-anticipated penultimate game of the Serie A campaign.
Another classic should be in store, with Palmeiras hoping their second half play once again serve as a decisive factor.
