With Carlo Ancelotti in the stands at the Arena da Baixada on the eve of the Brazilian team’s call-up for the World Cup, Athletico-PR and Flamengo drew 1-1 this Sunday (17), in the 16th round of the Brazilian Championship. Mendoza opened the scoring for Furacão after Rossi’s mistake, while Pedro avoided the red-black defeat at the end of the second half.
The duel in Curitiba was intense from the first minutes. Pushed by the fans, Athletico started pressing and scared with plays from Mendoza and Viveros. In the 11th minute, the Colombian striker received the ball on the right, finished with his right foot and had a deflection off Léo Ortiz to deceive Rossi, who accepted the ball and saw Furacão take the lead.
The error increased the pressure on the Argentine goalkeeper, who had already been criticized for his performance in Flamengo’s elimination to Vitória, in the Copa do Brasil. Despite the failure, Rossi recovered during the match and avoided a bigger loss in the final stage.
On the other side, Flamengo found it difficult to break through Atletica’s marking. Pedro, Paquetá and Samuel Lino tried to accelerate the offensive plays, but stopped at the defense led by Juan Aguirre and Santos’ good interventions.
Still in the first half, Athletico almost added a header from Arthur Dias that went close to the crossbar. Flamengo responded with a free kick from Léo Pereira and a missed finish from Paquetá.
Around halftime, the game picked up an even faster pace. Carrascal hit the crossbar after just five minutes after Samuel Lino’s cross, while Athletico responded in sequence with Viveros forcing Rossi to make two great saves. On the rebound, the attacker even hit the crossbar.
The changes promoted by Flamengo made the team more aggressive. Bruno Henrique and Everton increased the offensive pressure, and the equalizer came after 39 minutes. Bruno Henrique received a throw from Léo Pereira on the left and crossed low for Pedro to complete the ball into the back of the net. The move went through VAR review, but the goal was confirmed.
In the final minutes, Flamengo still lost Danilo, sent off after receiving a second yellow card for a harsh foul on Viveros. Even with one player less, the Rio team held on to a draw away from home.
The match also marked Ancelotti’s last in-person observation before the national team’s final call-up. The Italian coach watched the clash alongside coordinator Rodrigo Caetano and the president of Athletico, Mario Celso Petraglia, who honored him with a shirt from the club from Paraná.
