Internacional's defenders knew what was coming and still couldn't stop it. Kaio César picked up the ball in wide areas again and again, dropped a shoulder, and went past his man. By full time he had done it ten times.
The final score read Internacional 2-1 Corinthians in the Brasileirão Serie A, a result that will sting more than the performance deserved for the forward at the center of it.
The numbers behind the chaos
Kaio César attempted 17 dribbles and completed 10 of them, a conversion rate that left Internacional's markers grabbing shirts and conceding fouls. He was brought down three times, each stop a small concession from defenders who had run out of better options.
It added up to a match rating of 7.3, the kind of individual mark that usually accompanies a winning scoreline rather than a losing one.
Brilliance without reward
That is the uncomfortable part of this story. Corinthians lost 2-1 despite having a player who spent 90 minutes making Internacional's backline look slow and uncertain. Dribbling output like this, ten of seventeen completed with three fouls won, is the profile of a man who was simply unplayable in one-on-one situations.
Football does not always reward the man who wins his individual battles. Kaio César won his, over and over, and Corinthians still walked away with nothing from Internacional.