By rising to 71 points, the Cariocas put pressure on Abel Ferreira’s men
O remains firm in his dispute for the title with . This Saturday, after a complicated first half on the day of the 130th anniversary, they took advantage of the advantage of two more players on the field in the final phase to seek a 5-1 comeback at Arena Pernambuco, demoting the bottom team and provisionally taking the lead.
By rising to 71 points, the Cariocas put pressure on the team’s team, with 68 and who are still playing this Saturday at Santos’ home, at 9pm. Also full of absences, like Flamengo, the white team only regained first place with a triumph in the classic – they scored 2-0 at Allianz Parque two rounds ago.
With 12 players missing, Flamengo was at a disadvantage after giving the Pernambuco team a goal on a plate. To make matters worse, there was a lack of creativity up front and the home team’s defense stood out. Until the first expulsion and the equalizing goal came before the break.
Under obligation to triumph at any cost due to pressure on Palmeiras, with whom they compete for leadership point by point, Flamengo entered the field at Arena Pernambuco seeking to overcome the high number of absences, including players of the caliber of Arrascaeta and Pedro.
Without 12 players, seven defending their countries in the FIFA Data – Danilo and Alex Sandro are with Brazil, Viña, Arrascaeta and Varela with Uruguay, Carrascal serving Colombia and Gonzalo Plata, Ecuador – and another five injured – Pedro, Léo Ortiz, De La Cruz, Léo Ortiz, Jorginho and Allan -, Filipe Luís surprised by choosing an extremely offensive scheme with four attackers to exploit the desperation of Pernambuco, who only avoided relegation this Saturday with a triumph.
Instead of midfielder Evertton Araújo, the coach opted for the young Wallace Yan, assisted by Samuel Lino, Luiz Araújo and captain Bruno Henrique, freed from accusations of involvement in betting. The order was to open the scoring soon to avoid the suffering in the last clash between the two, a few days ago, in which Sport managed to pass unscathed against the red-black starting team throughout the first half – they ended up defeated 3-0.
The strategy collapsed after just 14 minutes. Ayrton Lucas played the ball to João Victor, who ended up being disarmed by Léo Pereira and the ball reached Pablo. The attacker hit hard and took the zero off the scoreboard.
Angry at seeing the team leave at a disadvantage, the Flamengo fans started picking on Emerson Royal. He was outraged by the booing of his player and asked for support from the stands. The truce was only symbolic, with some booing the right-back.
The difficult situation for the Cariocas lasted until the 36th minute, when Matheus Alexandre was expelled due to an accumulation of yellow cards, leaving Sport with one less on the field. Until then, holding their own well in defense, the Pernambuco team had one more obstacle ahead of them. But the punishment came immediately with Luiz Araújo equalizing with a beautiful shot from distance. The Flamengo player was celebrating the draw when Ramón, also for his second foul in the game, was also sent off.
With the considerable numerical advantage on the field, Filipe Luís returned with another attacker from the break. Michael in a defender’s spot. The question was how long Sport would resist the enormous pressure.
Flamengo, as expected, began to pile up chances and Gabriel became a standout, with difficult saves in sequence. The bravery of the Pernambucans lasted until the 15th minute. Everton Cebolinha, with seconds on the field, hit a cross and stopped at the post, Juninho, also with his first touch, turned in the rebound. Bruno Henrique made the third through coverage at 17 after the goalkeeper’s wrong exit, relieving the red-black tension.
With victory guaranteed against an opponent without the strength to react with two down, it remained to be seen how many more goals Flamengo would score. Ayrton Lucas turned the score into a rout and shouts of “olé” filled the stands.
Douglas Telles, a young player from the under-20s, also defined the defeat with seconds on the field after a precise pass from Cebolinha. The debutant boy couldn’t contain his emotion after so many hugs and greetings. He went to the edge of the field with tears in his eyes to thank Filipe Luís.
Technical sheet
SPORT 1 X 5 FLAMENGO
SPORT – Gabriel; Matheus Alexandre, Rafael Tuyere, Ramón and Luan Cândido; Christian Rivera (Riquelme), Lucas Kal and Lucas Lima (Adriel); Matheusinho (Aderlan), Léo Pereira (Sérgio Oliveira) and Pablo (Igor Cariús). Coach: César Lucena.
Flamengo – Rossi; Emerson Royal, João Victor (Michael), Léo Pereira and Ayrton Lucas; Pulgar (Evertton Araújo) and Saúl; Luiz Araújo, Samuel Lino (Everton Cebolinha0, Bruno Henrique (Douglas Telles) and Wallace Yan (Juninho). Coach: Filipe Luís.
GOALS – Pablo, at 14, and Luiz Araújo at 40 minutes of the first half; Juninho, at 15, Bruno Henrique, at 17, Ayrton Lucas at 25 and Douglas Telles at 34 of the second.
YELLOW CARDS – João Victor, Pulgar and Saúl (Flamengo) and Riquelme (Sport).
RED CARDS – Matheus Alexandre and Ramón (Sport).
REFEREE – Rafael Rodrigo Klein (RS).
INCOME – R$ 2,948,180.00
AUDIENCE – 19,706 present.
LOCATION – Arena Pernambuco, in São Lourenço da Mata (PE).
*With information from Estadão Conteúdo
