Brazilian clubs scramble to replay matches

Now that the Superior Tribunal of Sports Justice has ruled all 11 first-division matches refereed by Edilson Pereira de Carvalho null and void, the various Brazil clubs are scrambling to reschedule. Four matches have been added on 12 Oct and four more on the 19th, but finding times for the final three games is proving itself to be a bit difficult.

From Fox Sports:

The decision drew howls of protest from Sao Paulo, a three-time national champion and winner of the Copa Libertadores this year. The team must replay a loss to Ponte Preta and a victory over Corinthians.

"I think the decision is absurd," goalkeeper Rogerio Ceni told Pele's Web site. "Maybe he manipulated one or two games, but not all 11 ... This jeopardizes the tournament, which was going so well."

Sao Paulo is in 11th place with 38 points, 15 behind leader Corinthians, and must find dates to replay the canceled matches.

"It was a referee who made the mistake, and he's the one who should be punished," Sao Paulo coach Paulo Autuori said. "But the team that won its points cleanly will be punished the same way."

Hardest hit was Cruzeiro, which lost six points for two victories that were annulled and fell from eighth place to 13th among the 22 first-division clubs.

Corinthians, meanwhile, cemented its hold on first place and could widen its lead when it replays games it lost to Sao Paulo and Santos. Players admitted the team could benefit from the decision but said Corinthians deserved the lead.
-----

One good piece of news, Carvalho realizes his referee days are over. "I was corrupted. I'm finished."

It's nice to know that he is not going to pull some bs and try to stay involved in the game. If only more corrupt folks went away this easily.