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Paulista classic Corinthians face Santos for Brazilian championshipPosted: Thursday December 05, 2002 6:00 AMSAO PAULO, Brazil (AP) -- Three-time champion Corinthians advanced to the Brazilian championship finals Wednesday by defeating Fluminense 3-2 in front of nearly 70,000 fans at Morumbi stadium. Corinthians will play rival Santos, which lost to Gremio 1-0 in Porto Alegre but moved on a 3-1 aggregate score. Corinthians' striker Guilherme, who missed a penalty kick in the first leg's last minute, redeemed himself by scoring two goals. Corinthians needed to win to reach the finals after it lost Sunday's match 1-0 in Rio de Janeiro. Roni put Fluminense ahead in the 20th minute. Gil netted the equalizer with a header in the 35th minute and Guilherme scored in the 58th and 82nd minute. Roni closed the scoring with a goal in the 82nd minute. Veteran striker Romario -- the star of Brazil's 1994 World Cup title -- left the game in the first half because of a thigh injury. In the other semifinal, two-time champion Gremio could not come up with the three goals it needed to reach the finals. The team lost 3-0 in the first leg. Rodrigo Fabri, the championship's leading scorer along Sao Paulo's Luis Fabiano, netted his 19th goal of the season in the 68th minute. But Santos held on to reach its first final since it lost the title to Botafogo in 1995. The result also gave the Sao Paulo state team an opportunity to play in its first Copa Libertadores in 18 years. Gremio finished third in the championship with the win and also guaranteed a spot in next year's main club tournament in Latin America. It will be the first time Santos and Corinthians face each other in a Brazilian championship final. Santos won all three games the teams played in 2002. In the regular season, Santos routed Corinthians 4-2 at Pacaembu stadium. The finals' first leg is scheduled for Sunday at Vila Belmiro stadium.
Semifinals; Second leg
Finals; First leg
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