Leaders Criciuma lost on the road to Paulista, 3-1, on Tuesday, and saw its advantage at the top of the standings shrink from seven to four points in the Brazilian Serie B soccer league. Roberto Santos scored all three goals for the locals, helping the team reach 19 points to climb out of the relegation zone, to 15th place.
Meanwhile, Marilia defeated Ipatinga at home, 2-1, thanks to a goal in the final minutes.

Five games complete the Brazilian Serie B 19th round on Saturday. Leader Criciuma host Portuguesa already guaranteed first place in the standings at the halfway point of the season. The visitors can take over fourth spot with a win and enter the promotion zone to the Serie A. Third place Coritiba take on Santa Cruz at home, knowing a win will create a five point buffer between them and current fourth place Vitoria.

Three games on Friday in the 19th round of the Brazilian Serie B.
BRASILIENSE x SAO CAETANO - Brasiliense will try to return to the top 4 in the standings when it hosts Sao Caetano. The team lost its fourth place position when Vitoria beat Gama 3-1 on Tuesday. But a win can even lift the team to a tie for third place with Coritiba, depending on that team's result.

Two matches on Friday and six on Saturday complete the 16th round of the Brazilian Serie B. On Tuesday, second place Coritiba defeated Avai 1-0 at home, while Ituano continued its recovery with a 2-1 home win over Sao Caetano, its second win in a row.
Last place Paulista travels to Salvador to face Vitoria, which defeated Coritiba 3-1 on Saturday.

A full schedule on Tuesday marks the 17th round of the 2007 Brazilian Serie B football league. With ten games scheduled for tonight, the fight for one of the four spots in the Serie A next year continues.
Leaders Criciuma, already seven points clear of second place Marilia, travel to Jundiai to face 18th place Paulista, which would be dropping to the Serie C if the tournament ended today.

And so the 2007 Brazilian Serie A championship came to an end on Sunday, with Sao Paulo repeating as champions and winning its fifth ever National title. The team coached by Muricy Ramalho had been crowned four games before the end of the season, and tied once and lost twice in its three last games - including a 2-1 away defeat to Atletico Paranaense on Sunday.

Two games open the 19th round of the Brazilian Serie B soccer league on Tuesday. Vitoria hosts Gama needing a win to temporarily join the top four in the promotion zone, while Paulista travels to Ipatinga trying to move further away from the bottom of the table.
Here's a preview of tonight's games:
VITORIA x GAMA
Vitoria can temporarily join the promotion zone of the Serie B with a win over Gama at the Barradao Stadium on Tuesday.

Three games open the 15th round of the Brazilian Serie B on Friday.
Sixth place Gama tries to return to the top four when it hosts Portuguesa in Brasilia. The team lost its two last matches, on the road, and hopes to recover now that it's returning home. Portuguesa will also try to surprise Gama here, since a win will also temporarily put the team from Sao Paulo into the top four.

After two matches on Tuesday to open the 13th round, the Brazilian Serie B football league continues with two games this Friday and six on Saturday. The most anticipated game of this round is the one that pits leaders Criciuma against second place Vitoria, in Santa Catarina. The visitors try to close a five-point gap to the leaders, while staying among the top four on the table.

The Brazilian Serie B Football League has had 12 of its 38 rounds played so far, with Criciuma holding the top spot in the standings with 26 points, five more than second place Vitoria and third place Gama. Coritiba comes next with 20 points to round out the top four which would be promoted if the tournament ended today. There's still a long way to go, however, and anything can still happen.