Sao Paulo stumble again; three-way tie for first

RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) -- Brazilian champions Sao Paulo lost 1-0 at home to Atletico Mineiro on Sunday and sank to ninth place in the title race.

Wins for Corinthians and Vasco da Gama put the clubs level with Botafogo on 11 points at the top of the table.

Sao Paulo have lost two of their first five games, compared with a record of four defeats in the whole of the 2006 championship.

The reigning champions had defender Leandro dismissed for a lunging challenge and Atletico capitalised with Paulo Henrique scoring past goalkeeper Rogerio Ceni.

Sao Paulo coach Muricy Ramalho admitted his team were in danger of losing touch with the leaders even at such an early stage.

"I'm not interested in offering excuses here. We know we can do better and we have to work hard to get past this phase," he told reporters.

With Gremio focused on Wednesday's Libertadores Cup clash with Argentina's Boca Juniors, Vasco da Gama took advantage by coasting to 4-0 home win.

Romario underlined his determination to keep playing despite having recently reached his 1,000-goal career target. The veteran striker scored two of the Vasco goals in a game that was interrupted for half an hour due to a power failure.

Botafogo earned a 1-1 draw against a Palmeiras, while Santos' poor run continued with a 1-0 defeat to Internacional.

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