Novorizontino thrashed Athletic 4-1 at Estádio Joaquin Portugal in the Serie B's twenty-fourth round on 24 August 2026. The visitors dominated from the opening exchanges and never looked back after their opponents lost a man before halftime. And here's the thing — the match turned on a single incident that changed everything from the first minute.
Nicolas Careca opened the scoring in the nineteenth minute, catching Athletic off guard. The home side's troubles compounded when Diogo Batista de Souza received his second yellow card in stoppage time, leaving his team with ten men. To be fair, the red card came just as the half was winding down, but the damage was already done. Novorizontino carried their advantage into the second period.
Robson doubled the visitors' lead in the fifty-ninth minute, and Matheus Bianqui made it three in the seventieth-seven. Wilinton Aponzá added a fourth shortly after, while Luís Oyama wrapped things up in the ninety-fifth minute. By then, Athletic had thrown everything forward, but their numerical disadvantage showed in every phase of play. Novorizontino kept their composure and controlled the tempo.
The statistics tell the story without embellishment. Novorizontino held 55 per cent possession and created five big chances compared to Athletic's two. Their expected goals figure of 3.36 dwarfed the hosts' 1.28, and their shot accuracy of fifty per cent contrasted sharply with Athletic's ten per cent. And here's the thing — you can have possession and still not finish, but Novorizontino did both.
The result moves Novorizontino further clear in fourth place with forty-three points from twenty-five games. Athletic remain thirteenth on thirty-four points, their recent form of three wins and a draw offering little comfort. To be fair, both teams have played equally, but the quality gap showed through on the pitch. Novorizontino fancy their chances of pushing higher up the table.
