Kevin Viveros leads the Brasileirão scoring by five goals

The Campeonato Brasileiro Série A scoring chart has a clear leader. Kevin Viveros of Paranaense sits top with 21 goals, and nobody else in the division has reached twenty.

The gap is the story. Pedro is second on 16 for Flamengo, five behind. Gabriel Barbosa follows on 15 for Santos, a further goal back. Then comes the drop: Carlos Vinícius of Grêmio and Kaio Jorge of Cruzeiro are level on 11 apiece, ten short of the leader.

Look at the two men on 11 and what surrounds them. Grêmio sit fifth on 51 points with a goal difference of +9. Cruzeiro are third on — no, third belongs to Cruzeiro on 54, and Cruzeiro are the side directly below them on the same 54 points. Two clubs separated by goal difference alone, and each leaning on a striker who has found the net 11 times.

At the top of the table the margin is thinner than the scoring race. Flamengo lead on 70 points with a goal difference of +37. Palmeiras are one point behind on 69, their goal difference +34. One point, with the title run-in still to play.

So which number matters more? A striker ten goals clear of the chasing pack, or a title race decided by a single point? Kevin Viveros has done his part. Whether Paranaense, fourth on 54 points, can turn that output into anything more is a different question entirely.

The fixture list does not pause for reflection. Flamengo and Mineiro played out a 3-2 result on Monday 26 October, and the competition picks up again on Wednesday 28 October, when Bragantino host Chapecoense.

For Pedro, the arithmetic is simple. Five goals to find, and a leader who has not stopped scoring.