- The Santos striker assisted both goals in the 2-0 win and has been involved in at least one goal in each of his last five appearances in the CONMEBOL Sudamericana.
- With nine goal contributions, he has the best numbers of the 2026 edition; less than a month ago, he had reached 100 goals in the 'Peixe' jersey.
There are nights when a striker doesn't need to find the net to own the game. Gabigol's at the Vila Belmiro was one of them: he didn't score and, although his run of four consecutive scoring games in the CONMEBOL Sudamericana came to an end, he left the pitch as the key player of the quarterfinal first leg against Atlético Mineiro. Two assists, in Santos' 2-0 win over the tournament's reigning runners-up.
The first was vintage Gabigol, pure penalty-box striker: a cross from Gustavo Henrique from the left, a leap and a headed knockdown for Willian Arão to slot home with his left foot. The linesman raised the flag and VAR overturned it: Gabigol was onside. Goal given. The second, 23 minutes into the second half, was the kind that makes the highlight reels: an outside-of-the-boot pass with his left foot that left Christian Oliva alone in front of goal, almost at the edge of the six-yard box. The Uruguayan finished low and the striker added his second key pass of the night.
What the Opta data says turns a good performance into a record. Gabigol has been involved in at least one goal in each of his last five appearances in the CONMEBOL Sudamericana — four goals and four assists — and is the first Santos player to do so in the competition since records began, in 2013. With nine direct goal contributions, five goals and four assists, he is also the player who has produced the most goals in the 2026 edition. And the detail that sums up the night: providing two assists in a single match is something he had only done once before in continental competitions, with Flamengo, in the 2022 CONMEBOL Libertadores.
The spotlight matters because it comes at a particular moment in his history with the club. Less than a month ago, on August 13 and at this very Vila Belmiro, Gabigol reached 100 goals in the Santos jersey: it came against Macará, in the first leg of the Round of 16 of this CONMEBOL Sudamericana, 44 minutes into the first half, in his 244th match for the 'Peixe'. The round number closed out a goal he himself had set for 2026 and left him 24th among the top scorers in Santos history.
2026 is his third spell at Santos. He debuted for the club in 2013, left in 2016, returned on loan in 2018 and came back this year, on loan again, from Cruzeiro, with a contract through December. Before this season he had 210 matches and 84 goals for the club where he came through the ranks; when he hit 100, he had 16 goals and seven assists in the 34 games of the year.
In between, there was a whole career. Gabigol won the CONMEBOL Libertadores with Flamengo and became one of the most recognizable strikers on the continent, with a clear identity: the man who shows up on the big nights. What he showed against Mineiro is another version of the same idea. When the opponent shuts down the goal, he looks for the best-placed teammate. And this time he found him twice.
For Santos, playing the first series in their history against a fellow Brazilian side from the quarterfinals onward in 'La Gran Conquista', the two-goal lead is worth double: only three teams that won the quarterfinal first leg of the CONMEBOL Sudamericana by two or more goals ended up eliminated. For Gabigol, the second leg in Belo Horizonte is another chance to add to a run that already has him as the most influential player of the edition. If he scores, he resumes the habit; if he assists, he extends it. Either way, the 'Peixe' know who to look to.
From 100 goals to the match where none was needed. Gabigol, on loan and under contract until the end of the year, is building a campaign at Santos that the CONMEBOL Sudamericana measures in numbers and the Vila Belmiro in ovations. The one from the first leg against Mineiro was for two key passes.
