Football Season Guide

Cuiabá escaped relegation by four points, last season. They lacked some of the charm of the previous season, but at least they managed to survive for the second season in a row. Not bad for a team that is having their first years in top flight. Cuiabá has easily won the Regional championship, but that doesn't mean much as 'Dourado' rarely has a true competition in Campeonato Matogrossense, having won 9 out of the last 11 editions. They were knocked-out in the first round of Brazilian Cup by a lower division team. Cuiabá lost their manager from last season, but they kept a Portuguese in command. This time, it will be Ivo Vieira in charge. The former Famalicão and Guimarães gaffer is excellent tactically, but will need severe adaptation to the Brazilian reality, where there isn't much margin for mistakes. 'Dourado' invested a bit to try and have a safer season than last year. Striker Pitta is perhaps the biggest name, but Raniele and Ceppelini are the most exciting new signings to a team that lost very important names like Pepê, Joaquim, João Lucas or Pirani. The team seems to have more options for the long season. The likes of Walter in goal, Marllon at the back, Filipe Augusto and Sobral in midfield, and Deyverson and Wellington Silva in attack are guarantees of quality. The players that left were arguably Dourado's best units, and it isn't clear that the club have replaced them properly. Cuiabá's very unique geographic and economical situations don't help them to attract abundant talent. If Raniele keeps up with the level shown at Avaí, he should be leading Cuiabá with his physical and technical abilities. Goalkeeper Walter has been a reference on the team in the past 2 years. Ceppelini is expected to replace Pepê and assume the team's playmaker role.