Douglas, of Operário, admits Real Brasil deserved the draw in the Copa Rex opener
Club president celebrated the three points in the 2-1 win, praised Lalado and called Group B tough
Automatically translated from Portuguese. Read the original in Portuguese
Operário kicked off Copa Rex 2026 with a win, but club president Douglas made no secret of the struggle. After the 2-1 victory over Real Brasil on the night of November 4, for matchday 1 of Group B, he admitted in an interview with Rádio Cultura that the opponent deserved more.
"The Real Brasil team grew a lot in the second half. If you go by logic, they even deserved a draw. But thank God we managed to leave with three points", he said. For Douglas, Operário were better in the first half, and the final stretch was balanced. "Real Brasil really valued our win today."
The match's standout was Lalado, named player of the match. He took the penalty that opened the scoring. Before the game, Douglas had already named the midfielder as the team's major reinforcement, and he also praised the opponent: "Their team is good. They'll be in the mix in this championship."
The opening win matters because the group is short and tough. Besides Operário and Real Brasil, it also includes Borussia, Botafogo and Paraíso. "Today was a very important game. Winning, starting with three points, precisely because of this group, which is tough and has no pushovers", the executive said.
Douglas comes to Copa Rex with a respectable record. "It's my fifth championship, and I've reached the last four finals. I won two and lost two." Asked about the favorites, he declined to pick one, but mentioned Olaria, Botafogo, Social and XV de Novembro among the teams expected to contend for the top spots.
Operário, a club from Jardim Glória with headquarters in Jardim Campestre, also bets on its youth system. Four players trained at the club sat on the bench in the opener and did not come on because of the tight game.
Operário's next match is against Paraíso, on November 18, at 20h15, for matchday 2.
All Copa Rex matches are broadcast live on Rádio Cultura 96.5 FM and on the station's YouTube channel. The full broadcast of Operário x Real Brasil is at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0k8W7SZYrk4
Copa Rex 2026 is sponsored by the Municipal Government of Lavras, Supermercados Rex, Sicoob Copermec, Pax Carvalho, Chopp Brahma Express, Fábrica de Óculos, Casel Materiais de Construção, Laboratório Santa Cecília, 123 Car, Conecta Internet and Fadminas (Minas Gerais Adventist College).
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