Léo Ortiz's former teammate praises Flamengo defender: "he's different"

Referee Rodrigo Pereira will be responsible for commanding Internacional x Flamengo, this Sunday (17), for the Brasileirão . It will be the 12th time that he whistles a Mengão game and curiously, repeating the confrontation against the team from Rio Grande do Sul in the second round of the Brazilian Championship .

In the last match under his refereeing, in the 36th round of the 2024 Brasileirão, Rubro-Negro beat Internacional 3-2, at Maracanã, with goals from Léo Ortiz and Michael (2) . Rodrigo Pereira's performance, however, did not go unnoticed.

During Colorado's second goal, Flamengo players and fans complained about a clash between Plata and the referee early in the play . Flamengo had possession of the ball in their defensive half but lost it after the collision, allowing Enner Valencia to shoot. The CBF will soon release the full refereeing schedule, including Rodrigo Pereira's assistants and the VAR official.

REFEREE'S RETROSPECT WITH FLAMENGO

Recently, Rodrigo Pereira was involved in the 0-0 draw against Ceará, in the 18th round, in a match marked by a large number of interruptions : 26 fouls were called, 12 from Flamengo and 14 from the opponent.

Pereira maintains the characteristic of stopping the game a lot, which is reflected in the high average of cards - 60 yellow cards distributed in 11 Fla games (28 for Rubro-Negro and 32 for rivals), which gives 5.4 per game. In total, Flamengo has 5 wins, 5 draws and only 1 loss with the referee, a 60.6% success rate.

SCENARIO FOR THE DUEL

The match at Beira-Rio will be the second chapter in the trilogy between Flamengo and Internacional, who also face each other in the round of 16 of the Copa Libertadores . Flamengo won the first leg 1-0 at Maracanã and is looking to maintain its lead in the Brasileirão — currently with 40 points, three more than second-place Cruzeiro.

Flamengo remains interested in signing goalkeeper Gabriel Brazão , from Santos, to strengthen the squad in 2026. At 24 years old, the player is in great form and was already on the red-black radar since the confirmation of the departure of Matheus Cunha , who signed a pre-contract with Cruzeiro and will leave the club at the end of the year.

The deal, already considered difficult, has become even more complicated. This is because Santos loaned reserve goalkeeper João Paulo to Bahia , which practically makes Brazão's release this season impossible. Mengão, however, is unlikely to make an offer this season, as the goalkeeper has already played eight Brasileirão games, which would preclude his participation in the rest of the season.

With an estimated market value of €6 million (approximately R$38 million) , the Santos goalkeeper is being closely monitored by Flamengo , which plans to reevaluate the situation next year. The possibility of progress in negotiations will depend on Santos strengthening its squad for the position.

GABRIEL BRAZÃO NUMBERS

Discovered by Cruzeiro and with experience in Italian football—including Inter Milan and Parma— Brazão arrived at Santos in 2024 and quickly established himself as a starter . In the Brasileirão, he's among the leaders in saves, sharing the spotlight with Vitória's Lucas Arcanjo. In total, he has made 70 decisive saves, attracting attention both in Brazil and Europe.

JOÃO PAULO'S LOAN TO BAHIA

Meanwhile, João Paulo is already in Salvador for medical exams and to sign a contract with Bahia. The loan agreement runs until December and includes buyout clauses , reinforcing Santos' need to keep Brazão as a starter until the end of the season.

Flamengo continues to make money in the current transfer window . After multi-million dollar negotiations involving Wesley and Gerson, the club secured another sum with the transfer of a longtime acquaintance: defender Willyan Rocha, who played for the Flamengo youth team in 2015 .

A standout at CSKA (Russia), Willyan has agreed to join Al-Jazira in the United Arab Emirates in a deal valued at around €5 million (R$31.6 million). Under FIFA's solidarity mechanism, which guarantees compensation to clubs that train athletes, Flamengo will receive approximately 0.5% of the amount, equivalent to around R$170,000 at the current exchange rate.

In addition to Flamengo, Grêmio and Votuporanguense, teams Willyan also played for in the youth ranks, will be entitled to small portions of the deal. This isn't the first defender Mengão has received through this mechanism after his sale this season . With the negotiation between Paris FC and Porto for Otávio, the Mais Querido also paid out a significant amount.

POSSIBLE NEW EARNINGS

At 30 years old, the defender signed a contract with Al-Jazira until mid-2027. If he is negotiated again before the end of the contract, Flamengo will once again profit from the solidarity mechanism, although a negotiation after the age of 30 is considered rarer .

FLAMENGO'S CURRENT DEFENSE

Currently, the red-and-black defense has six main options: Léo Ortiz, Léo Pereira, and Danilo as the more experienced players , plus the youngsters Cleiton, João Victor, and Iago Teodoro, who are part of the professional squad. The "Leos" duo has been a regular starter due to their seniority and Danilo's injury.