Flamengo will compete in the Copa Libertadores final for the fifth time in its history, in search of its fourth title. This Wednesday (29), even playing with one player less after 10 minutes of the second half, the red and black team managed to control the pressure from Racing, from Argentina, and held on to a goalless draw, enough to advance to the final.
Champion in 1981, 2019 and 2022, as well as runner-up in 2021, the Rio team made good on the advantage they had built in the first game, when they won 1-0 at Maracanã.
At their opponent’s home, after a balanced first half, Flamengo spent much of the final stage locked in defense, after Plata was sent off. The attacker received a red card for punching Rojo’s private parts.
Even so, however, Racing managed to break through the red and black defense, especially by insisting on aerial plays, almost always to the advantage of the Brazilian team’s players.
At the El Cilindro stadium, in Avellaneda, not even the pressure from the home fans, who threw a beautiful party, was enough to push the Argentines towards victory.
Scheduled for 9:30 pm (Brasília time), the match was postponed until 9:50 pm. The delay occurred because the Flamengo delegation faced heavy traffic in the city and also had difficulty accessing the stadium due to the large crowd of Racing fans.
At the time initially scheduled for kickoff, the referee still had to wait a few more minutes for the smoke from the flares used by the fans when the teams entered the field to clear.
When the ball finally rolled, the home team took little advantage of the atmosphere created. In addition to abusing aerial plays, they had an inspired night from goalkeeper Rossi, well positioned the few times the Argentines hit the target.
Having qualified for the decision, Flamengo will now wait for their opponent to be defined. In the other semi-final, Palmeiras and LDU, from Ecuador, will face each other this Thursday (30), at Allianz Parque, in São Paulo. In the first game, the Ecuadorian team won 3-0.
