Maranhão secured a 4-1 victory over Itabaiana in the eighteenth round of Serie C on Sunday evening. The hosts opened the scoring inside the first ten minutes and never looked back. Itabaiana pulled one back through Rosivan before the break was complete. The result keeps Maranhão in twelfth place while Itabaiana remain nineteenth.
Jorge Rocha struck at six minutes to set the tone. Lucao doubled the advantage twelve minutes in. Felipe Cruz made it three at twenty-five, and here's the thing — the fourth goal came from Julio Henrique at thirty-five. By then the match was effectively decided.
I remember watching around the twenty-minute mark when Maranhão looked comfortable. They had the rhythm and the confidence. Itabaiana tried to respond but couldn't find their footing. Rosivan's goal at fifty-two minutes was a late consolation.
Cleiton and Leilson came on together at the restart. Everton Kanela joined the fray at fifty-nine minutes. Rodrigo Alves missed a penalty in stoppage time — 90+6 minutes — which would have been cruel. The visitors had chances but couldn't convert.
Maranhão dominated possession at 57 per cent and registered 93 attacks compared to 70 for the visitors. Both sides landed seven shots on target, but efficiency favoured the home side. Itabaiana earned five corners to one, showing they pushed forward late on.
Maranhão sit on 27 points from nineteen games with seven wins. Itabaiana have 17 points with only four victories. The gap between them is ten points and growing. Neither side can afford to slip further.