Palmeiras reached the Copa Libertadores final by defeating Fluminense 5-3 on penalties after losing the regulation match 1-0, and coach Abel Ferreira said the result shows the club has put its history of shootout defeats behind it. The second leg was played at the Nubank Parque, and the win sends the Verdão to a fourth continental final under the Portuguese coach. UOL reported the outcome and the coach's comments.
Goalkeeper Carlos Miguel saved Nonato's attempt to seal qualification, repeating the role he played in the quarter-finals. According to UOL, he had already been decisive in the previous round's shootout against LDU, and Ferreira pointed to that save as the reason Palmeiras was still in the competition at all.
Why it matters
The result keeps Palmeiras alive in three competitions in 2026. The club sits second in the Brasileirão, one point behind Flamengo, and still has a Copa do Brasil semi-final to play. The Libertadores decider is set for 28 November at the Estádio Centenário in Uruguay, where Palmeiras will chase a fourth title in the competition.
For Ferreira, the achievement carries weight precisely because it has become routine. He told reporters that reaching Libertadores finals has started to look ordinary when it is anything but, and described the night above all as a job completed — one he hoped would let supporters sleep well and go to work happier.
A protocol for penalties, and praise for Carlos Miguel
Asked how he had helped his squad handle the pressure of a shootout, Ferreira said there was no secret formula, only a method he had settled on after repeated losses. UOL quoted him saying he had drawn up a protocol and that the team follows it knowing the outcome can go either way. No coach anywhere, he added, can guarantee a win from the spot; what counts is conviction.
He also defended Carlos Miguel against the tendency he sees in Brazilian football to cast players as hero or villain. Ferreira said the goalkeeper's mind would be occupied by the fear of being blamed for a miss, and noted that the same player had been below his best in the previous match. The coach argued that mistakes are part of an athlete's development and that how a player responds to them is what matters.
On the shootout record itself, Ferreira was blunt: he considers the old narrative outdated and believes belief around the club has grown. UOL reported his view that everyone now trusts a little more.
A difficult night and a crowd that lifted the team
Ferreira framed the match as an emotional contest between a side with everything to gain and one with an advantage to lose. He said fear of surrendering the lead, or the boldness to extend it, weighed heavily on his players, and he credited the squad, the staff and the preparation for getting through it. He also thanked the fans, saying the energy in the stadium changed after Palmeiras conceded, and that the support had been decisive — a response to his request for backing ahead of the game.
The coach was less generous elsewhere. R7 Esportes reported that, rather than celebrating the final berth, Ferreira criticised the press, saying journalists made a point of reminding him he was not good enough. He also said he had not watched the penalties, according to ESPN Brasil.
Experience, but no guarantees
Ferreira said last year's final defeat to Flamengo, which ended in a runners-up finish, had taught his group something, while insisting nothing is assured in football. He described the game as unpredictable and said his squad is more seasoned now. With another home match against Bragantino on Saturday, he added that there is barely time to celebrate, and that only winning interests him.
Palmeiras now turns to the Brasileirão fixture against Bragantino on Saturday, 24 October, at the Nubank Parque, before the Copa do Brasil semi-final and the Libertadores final in Montevideo on 28 November.
