Cruzeiro Face Fight to Keep Likes of Lucas Silva and Everton Ribeiro

Just as English football hurtles towards its traditional Christmas blitz, so the season in Brazil has seen the curtain close on another season. Last Sunday, all eyes were glued to the foot of the table, as Palmeiras, Bahia and Vitoria battled to be the only survivor of the trio.

As final whistles rang out around the country, Salvador rivals Bahia and Vitoria slipped through the trapdoor meaning that, of the 20 teams that will compete in the 2015 Campeonato Brasileiro, 18 hail from the country's South and South-East.

At the top, there was little action to take note of as Cruzeiro sauntered for most of the season towards a second successive title.

Teams briefly threatened to challenge them—Fluminense in the early season, Sao Paulo midway through the campaign—but as the championship's end neared, Cruzeiro were clear winners, their 10-point margin over second-placed Sao Paulo not wider only thanks to a couple of stuttering moments in the second half of the season.

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Brazilian football magazine Placar, perhaps surprisingly, had just two of their players in their Bola de Prata XI for the Brasileirao campaign.

Ricardo Goulart, who has forced his way into the international reckoning under new coach Dunga, and one of the most talked-about prospects in the domestic game, Lucas Silva, featured.

Now, the Belo Horizonte giants, who missed out on a domestic double after losing the Copa do Brasil final to city rivals Atletico Mineiro, will look to match Sao Paulo's unprecedented domestic record from the last decade.

The Paulista outfit won three league titles on the bounce between 2006 and 2008. Cruzeiro's chances of equalling that impressive feat will rest largely on the issue of whether they are able to maintain the base of the squad Marcelo Oliveira has managed to build over the last 20 months.

The season is not yet three days finished and transfer business does not sleep. Cruzeiro have already shown Marlone, Samudio and Borges the door, whilst recruiting Chapecoense full-back Fabiano, as reported by IG Esporte (link in Portuguese).

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But rumours have already begun to circle about the impending exit of some of their star performers. On Monday, Spanish newspaper El Pais (h/t Brazilian newspaper Globo Esporte) reported that the Brazilian club had received a first official offer from Spanish giants and European champions Real Madrid for Lucas Silva.

The 21-year-old is one of the brightest prospects in the domestic game but remains far from the finished article. At present, it is highly unlikely he would break into the Real first team and he could be better served staying in Minas Gerais for another six months at least.

There is also the small matter of a Copa Libertadores quest coming up after the turn of the year, the competition which saw their only disappointment of 2014. The club were eliminated in the quarter-finals by eventual champions San Lorenzo.

Cruzeiro's strength lies in the fact that, unlike so many Brazilian teams, they do not possess one standout player who is head and shoulders above his teammates. The spine of the team is its core, with the likes of goalkeeper Fabio, holding midfielder Nilton and creative forces Everton Ribeiro and Ricardo Goulart working in tandem to build a force that cannot be matched in Brazil.

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But with their ascension comes the inevitable links with the Old Continent, as Europe is known in these parts. Ribeiro, in particular, has been attracting interest from clubs such as Liverpool, as reported by The Daily Express, and, should he decide to move on after the Libertadores or before, his departure will be a void that will be enormously challenging to fill.

The state of the game in Brazil is hectic and disorganised, to put it as politely as possible. The non-stop calendar and revolving door may keep newspapers in headlines, but it does little for continuity and growth.

Much is made of manager turnover in England, but in this corner of the world it is not uncommon for clubs to plough through three or four coaches in 12 months. As such, there is little scope for long-term planning as players are constantly sold mid-season and squads are hurriedly cobbled together in slapstick fashion.

Cruzeiro's success over the last two seasons has swung on their consistency in keeping Oliveira at the helm and ability to keep hold of key players at crucial times. Whether they will be able to continue functioning with such a rare game plan is another matter entirely.