Team Focus: São Paulo’s Sovereignty on the Rocks

Sometimes things have to get worse before they get better. The night is darkest before the dawn and all that. The problem for fans of São Paulo FC is that it's only ten past midnight and things are already unbearably bad.

On Wednesday evening the Tricolor lost 2-0 to Corinthians in the second leg of the Recopa Sul-Americana, a result that sealed a 4-1 aggregate win for the latter. As the São Paulo players trudged off the pitch at the Pacaembu, their bitter rivals celebrated their fourth trophy of the decade.

Yet that was merely a drop in the ocean of dejection that has flooded through the club in recent weeks. A season that begun with hopes of Copa Libertadores glory and a domestic title challenge has come apart at the seams, prompting a rash of finger-pointing among shell-shocked supporters.

On one level, the malaise has sprung from results: São Paulo haven't won since May, while the Recopa defeat took their losing streak to six matches - something that hasn't happened since 1936, the year the club was formed.

Certainly the side is a shadow of the one that Ney Franco guided to the Copa Sul-Americana crown (admittedly something of a wooden spoon prize) in controversial circumstances at the end of 2012. Much of the responsibility for this lies with the experienced heads in the squad: goalkeeper Rogério Ceni is beginning to show his age (last estimate: 73) and spends more energy politicking and mouthing off to the press than he does actually playing football; Luís Fabiano seems hell-bent on regressing to the mental age of 10, leaving only a trail of pointless red cards by which to remember him.

Only the quietly effective Jádson has been able to maintain some semblance of last year's form. He, though, has been shunted around in the hope of accomodating Paulo Henrique Ganso, the club's record signing. The former Santos man continues to be the living definition of 'enigma', routinely failing to hit the heights of which he is undeniably capable. While he has shown a willingness to improve his game, he remains a startlingly immobile figure, operating on the margins of the game rather than bending it to his will. The comparison with his fellow playmaker is telling: Ganso has averaged 0.8 key passes a game compared to Jádson's 4, while the latter has attempted far more passes and shots.

But for all the on-field issues, the real blame for São Paulo's woes lies squarely in the boardroom, where the club's once-laudable administration decayed into a stagnant, snarky autocracy.

Winners of three consecutive Brazilian titles between 2006 and 2008, the Tricolor rightly won admirers for their organisational savvy, investing heavily to create a state-of-the-art training facility, a European-standard medical department and a new centre for youth development. The club was a picture of stability, with Muricy Ramalho given time to develop a balanced team and integrate players - Hernanes, Jean, Breno - coming through the ranks. It was around this time that fans began to refer to São Paulo as O Soberano - the sovereign.

Ironically, the rot began to set in exactly when internal democracy was forsaken by Juvenal Juvêncio, who altered the club's statute in order to extend his stay as president. In the years since, he has proven himself something of a megalomaniac, insisting on being the focus of attention even when it means the club suffers.

Juvêncio sacked Muricy six months after the 2008 title and has since chopped and changed coaches with the best (worst) of them, going through six before appointing Paulo Autouri this month. That lack of continuity has led to a decline in the number of players emerging from the youth teams, with the Tricolor increasingly choosing to spend on new talent rather than develop their own.

Perhaps the biggest problem, though, is one of self-perception. "The São Paulo directors are living a lie," Trivela columnist Felipe Lobo mused this week. "They still think they're in charge of the club that was praised for its management and exuded competency. They still believe they are different to the rest."

Recent outcry suggests Juvêncio will struggle to keep fans onside during the current crisis. With one sovereign having dissolved, few would bet against another head rolling.