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Experiencing a troubled moment at Flamengo, Gabigol faces possible final months with Manto Sagrado amid conflicts with coach Tite and his amount of time on the field. In this context, former player and commentator Fábio Santos assessed the situation between Gabi and the club as a marriage in crisis.

“(The case) with Gabigol is when family and friends want to resume the marriage , but the husband and wife don't want to", joked Fábio Santos.

The former full-back's statement refers to Flamengo fans, who still believe that the connection between the club and the player can be rekindled, despite currently seeming so far away. Meanwhile, both Gabigol and Flamengo seem to accept that the partnership may be coming to an end.

Gabigol could face one last challenge for Flamengo

The striker will have the responsibility of helping Rubro -Negro reversing the situation against Peñarol in a game that promises to be challenging and that could determine his departure or stay at the club.

The scenario points to Gabigol being a starter at the Campeón del Siglo Stadium. The player trained among the starters and should form an attacking trio with Bruno Henrique and Plata.

Thus, the hero of the 2019 and 2022 Libertadores may have the opportunity to prove once again that he is predestined, surpassing the Uruguayans after the defeat in the first game, when it was not even mentioned.

With a contract until the end of the year, Gabigol has been receiving inquiries from other clubs since 2023, with Palmeiras and Corinthians being the most next.

Flamengo and Peñarol (URU) are counting down to the duel that will define who advances to the semi-finals of the Copa Libertadores da América. After the Aurinegro team's last game before facing Rubro-Negro, striker Facundo Batista praised the team's good form under the command of Diego Aguirre and emphasized the importance of maintaining focus on the match valid for the continental tournament.

“The starting team is performing excellently and leading us to important things. Whoever comes in from the bank has to do the same or better. People are very excited, as are we. Now it’s time to rest and focus on Thursday (26th)”, stated the top scorer.

PEÑAROL SCORES BEFORE THE FACE WITH FLAMENGO

Last Sunday (22nd), Peñarol faced Cerro (URU) for the Uruguayan Championship and, in the last match before facing Flamengo, Facundo Batista scored the first three goals in the 5-0 victory, in the fourth round of the tournament. It is important to highlight that coach Diego Aguirre chose to rest all the starters in this match, choosing a reserve team.

LIBERTADORES ONE-WAY GAME

Last Thursday (19), at Maracanã, Flamengo failed to take advantage of the chance to take the lead in the search for a place in the Libertadores semi-finals, losing 1-0. Now, the Rio team will need to chase the result away from home.

AWAY DECISION

The second leg of the Libertadores quarter-finals will take place next Thursday (26), at the Campeón del Siglo Stadium, in Montevideo, starting at 7pm (Brasília time) . To keep the dream of 'Eternal Glory' alive, Flamengo will need to win by at least two goals. Any tie on the aggregate score will result in the penalty spot being decided.

Thiago Ribeiro, Gabigol's former teammate from Santos, spoke about the striker's current situation at Flamengo and his apparently difficult relationship with Tite. The former player expressed confidence that Gabi will turn things around and took the opportunity to send a hint to the red and black coach.

For Thiago Ribeiro, what Gabigol needs is trust, something that must be given by Tite. Only with this support, shirt 99 will be able to show his best football again.

“I believe that one of the most important things in football is confidence, the player has to have confidence, and the game sequence … So I believe that for him to resume his football, it requires confidence, and that goes through the coach. I'm not there on a daily basis, anyone who is there on a daily basis knows, but the board, the coach, has to give confidence to the player”, said the attacker.

With Pedro's injury, Gabigol became the third option in the squad, but it seems he doesn't have Tite's confidence to be the player who will solve the problems from Flamengo. This scenario, according to speculation, created a certain tension between the attacker and the coach, especially after Gabi was not included in the game against Peñarol.

Thiago Ribeiro believes that the best thing to do in a situation like this , especially at a time when Flamengo needs Gabigol most, it's up to Tite to "embrace" the player, demonstrate his confidence and guarantee the striker's place in the team.

“No one unlearns how to play football. And when the player is at that stage of delivering nowhere near what he usually delivers, at that stage the coach must arrive and say: I'm putting you to play, I believe in you, I'm counting on you”, added Thiago.

Despite the complicated moment, the expectation is that Gabigol will participate in the return match against Peñarol, not just as an option on the bench, but starting as a starter.