EITA! WORRISOME! ARRASCAETA APPROACHES 3 MONTHS WITHOUT PARTICIPATING IN GOALS FOR FLAMENGO

Being considered to join Tite's commission, Filipe Luís won titles with the Under-17s and, more recently, won the World Cup with the Under-20s, demonstrating all the potential that many already saw in him as a coach, even before his retirement as a player.  Beginning as a coach at Flamengo

Filipe Luís retired from the field in November 2023, after a brilliant career at Flamengo. His farewell took place in the penultimate round of the Brasileirão that year, along with Rodrigo Caio, who was also leaving the club.

Soon after hanging up his boots, Filipe Luís began his studies and preparation for his coaching career . In January 2024, just two months after retiring, he was announced as coach of Flamengo's Under-17 team.

In his debut as coach, Filipe Luís guided the team to a 5-1 victory. 1 over Boavista, showing that it would also bear fruit off the field. Later, he won the Copa Rio U17 in June, beating Vasco on penalties and lifting the trophy in São Januário.

The Copa Rio U-17 title also marked his departure from command of the category, as Flamengo chose him to replace Mário Jorge in the U-20, after the team won the Libertadores.

Filipe Luís needed little time to stand out in his new role. In August 2024, just two months after his arrival, he led the U20 team to win the Club World Cup, turning around the match against Olympiacos 2-1 at Maracanã.

This turnaround had direct influence from Filipe Luís, who made strategic substitutions, placing Caio Garcia and Felipe Teresa on the field, responsible for the goals that guaranteed the unprecedented title for a Brazilian club.

Now, three months after taking over the Under-20s, Filipe Luís takes another important step in his short, but promising, coaching career. He takes command of Flamengo's main team at a decisive moment of the season, with the club seeking to remain in the G4 of the Brasileirão and competing in the semi-finals of the Copa do Brasil.

The "marriage" between Tite and Flamengo officially came to an end this Monday (30), with the announcement of the coach's resignation. Thus, the coach ends his time at Rubro-Negro after 70 games, with a 64.7% success rate, in addition to having won a state title and suffered a disappointing elimination in the Libertadores da América.

Tite took over Flamengo on October 9, 2023, after Jorge Sampaoli left. The former Brazilian national team coach signed a contract until the end of 2024, but his departure comes three months ahead of schedule.

During his time in charge of Flamengo, Tite accumulated 70 matches, totaling 41 wins, 13 draws and 16 defeats. Under his management, the team scored 109 goals and conceded 50. He also led the team to win the Campeonato Carioca undefeated.

Despite a promising start, Flamengo's performances under Tite's command did not please the majority of the fans. The team, which led the Brasileirão for a few rounds, began to oscillate and currently occupies fourth place with 48 points, nine behind leader Botafogo, who has 57.

Elimination in the Libertadores

Three-time champion of the Libertadores, Flamengo entered the 2024 edition as one of the favorites and top seed in Group E. However, the performance of the team in the group stage fell below expectations, resulting in a second-place finish. In the round of 16, Flamengo beat Bolívar (BOL) 2-1 on aggregate, but was eliminated in the quarter-finals after being defeated by Peñarol (URU) without managing to score a goal.

In addition to Tite, the entire technical committee is also leaving Flamengo. Among the professionals leaving the club are assistants Cleber Xavier, Matheus Bachi, César Sampaio and Vinícius Bergantin, physical trainer Fábio Mahseredjian and performance analyst Lucas Oliveira.

The elimination of Flamengo in the Libertadores, against Peñarol away from home, intensified the pressure on Tite. However, in addition to criticism of the coach, other names have been mentioned by fans and journalists. Mauro Cezar Pereira, for example, harshly criticized Arrascaeta and Nico de la Cruz.

Mauro not only questioned Arrascaeta's behavior, but also his performance in recent years, suggesting that the Uruguayan has not been playing his best football . He even made a pun on the player's name. Furthermore, the journalist mentioned De La Cruz, questioning the physical form of the former River Plate player.

“Arrascaeta has been dragging on for years. Maybe Lil Gabi could even make some rhymes with it. Arrasca drags on. And De La Cruz looks like he's nailed to the cross. He also drags on, he is never in shape. What happens? Who questions? It seems like no one,” said Mauro Cezar Pereira on UOL’s Posse de Bola.

It’s worth remembering that both Arrascaeta and De La Cruz played in familiar territory. The elimination of Flamengo took place in Uruguay, and the number 14, in fact, has never hidden that he has been a Peñarol fan since childhood.

Even highlighting the performances of Arrascaeta and De La Cruz, Mauro Cezar Pereira also held Tite responsible for the elimination. The journalist pointed out that the coach is often the main target of criticism, but also mentioned the Flamengo board as part of the problem.

“Tite is largely responsible for the Libertadores, but this package has many characters. If once again, they just cut off the coach's head, without making vehement demands on the players, since the managers don't do it... Tite is one of those responsible, but this has been happening for years with several coaches. Players always go blank. There is a lack of charge”, stated MCP.

Finally, Mauro criticized the stance adopted by Tite during the game, stating that there was a lack of “blood in the eyes” to seek victory in Montevideo.

“It involves a lot of the coach, who has this good guy profile. Yesterday it was about playing with the knife between the teeth, blood in the eyes and beatings. That's how you play a finishing game like that. It doesn't finish. That's what's missing, coming together, being intense. This team is not like that”, he concluded.