Flamengo is only the ninth team that played the most this year among Series A teams

Pedro's injury seems to reveal the real extent of the loss of space in Flamengo's team under coach Tite. Bruno Henrique has been chosen so far for the role of center forward and, against Vasco, this Sunday (15), the coach opted for Carlinhos as a substitute. A situation that idol Maestro Júnior sees as an attempt to send a message to Gabriel, who entered the classic with five minutes to go.

“It was strange, really. Even because of his CV and everything he has done, independent of Carlinhos. But I think he would automatically be the man to step into that role. Whether it was more fixed or like he has done, leaving the area more. Some message was given, but Tite didn't comment at all...", Júnior said on the program 'Seleção SporTV'.

Tite was asked about the decision at the press conference and, just as Júnior said, he didn't comment much about it. the case. The stance that the coach adopts in some questions during the press conferences, and the Gabigol topic is probably the main one. He limited himself to saying that the option was based on “training and games”, in addition to highlighting Carlinhos’ decisive moments this season. Indicating that Camisa 22 is ahead.

The red-black coach's assistant and son, Matheus Bachi, assured that it was a tactical decision. This is because they assessed that the team needed a player who could take advantage of the crosses that were being created.

But the justifications were not enough to convince André Rizek. Continuing the debate with Maestro Júnior, the journalist stated that he doesn't see how Gabigol can be useful in Tite's Flamengo if he is behind Carlinhos in the hierarchy.

“He loses Pedro and opts for Bruno Henrique. But then Bruno leaves the game and the person who enters is not Gabigol, but Carlinhos. And so, if Gabigol doesn't beat Carlinhos at this moment, I can't see him being useful. A melancholic end for one of the greatest players in Flamengo's history.”

There was a current that stated that Tite could opt for Carlinhos instead of Gabigol to maintain as much as possible the characteristics that the team had with Pedro. This is because, despite technical differences, both are taller center forwards, who compete for the aerial ball and can pivot at the edge of the area. However, the choice of Bruno Henrique has already forced a change of system.

The red-black team no longer has a regular center forward. This is because, although good at playing from the top, Bruno does not usually act as a reference to hold the ball in attack. Which forces Flamengo to play with a more mobile attack, with position changes with Luiz Araújo, Gerson and now Gonzalo Plata. In addition to having reduced shots and touched the ball more in the last two games.

Tite, therefore, is already willing to change the way he plays and adapt to the team without Pedro in charge of the attack. But he has not yet shown that he is considering the possibility of testing the team with Gabigol in the starting 11.

International's 3 x 0 victory over Cuiabá, on Monday night (16), in Beira-Rio, ended the 26th round of the Brasileirão. With the result, the team from Rio Grande do Sul reached 38 points, in 8th position, and moved closer to the top squad.

Flamengo and Fortaleza were the G-4 teams that did not win, therefore, they saw Botafogo and Palmeiras opens up an advantage in the fight for the title. At the other end of the table, Corinthians lost and remains in the relegation zone. Defeated by Juventude, at Alfredo Jaconi, Fluminense is the first team outside the Z-4.

Atlético-GO 0 x 2 Vitória – Antônio Accioly

Athletico-PR 1 x 1 Fortaleza – Ligga Arena

Botafogo 2 x 1 Corinthians – Nilton Santos

Palmeiras 5 x 0 Criciúma – Allianz Parque

Bragantino 2 x 2 Grêmio – Nabi Abi Chedid

Juventude 2 x 1 Fluminense – Alfredo Jaconi

Cruzeiro 0 x 1 São Paulo – Mineirão

Bahia 3 x 0 Atlético-MG – Source Nova

Flamengo 1 x 1 Vasco – Maracanã

International 3 x 0 Cuiabá – Beira- Rio

1st Botafogo – 53 points

2nd Palmeiras – 50

3rd Fortaleza – 49

4th Flamengo – 45 (1 game less)

5th São Paulo – 44

6th Bahia – 42

6th Bahia – 42

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7th Cruzeiro – 41

8th International – 38 (2 games less)

9th Vasco – 35 (1 game less)

10° Atlético-MG – 33 (2 games less)

11° Juventude – 32

12° Bragantino – 31 (1 games less)

13° Athletico-PR – 30 (2 games less)

14° Grêmio – 28 (2 games less)

15° Criciúma – 28 (1 game less) less)

16° Fluminense – 27 (1 games less)

17° Vitória – 25

18° Corinthians – 25

19th Cuiabá – 22 (1 games less)

20th Atlético-GO – 18

Flamengo drew 1-1 with Vasco in the 26th round of the Brasileirão. This Sunday’s ‘Classic of Millions’ (15) marked the tenth duel of great rivalry faced by Rubro-Negro this season. In this cut, Mais Querido remains undefeated against Vasco and Fluminense, but has two defeats against Botafogo.

In 2024, Flamengo competed in ten classics, divided between Campeonato Carioca and Brasileirão. The team won five wins, three draws and suffered two defeats, thus achieving a 60% success rate against their Rio rivals. Throughout these clashes, Fla scored 14 goals and conceded eight.

02/04/2024 – Vasco 0 x 0 Flamengo – Campeonato Carioca

07/02/2024 – Flamengo 1 x 0 Botafogo – Campeonato Carioca

25/02/2024 – Flamengo 2 x 0 Fluminense – Campeonato Carioca

03/09/2024 – Fluminense 0 x 2 Flamengo – Carioca Championship

03/16/2024 – Flamengo 0 x 0 Fluminense – Carioca Championship

04/28/ 2024 – Flamengo 0 x 2 Botafogo – Brasileirão

02/06/2024 – Vasco 1 x 6 Flamengo – Brasileirão

26/06/2024 – Fluminense 0 x 1 Flamengo – Brasileirão< /p>

18/08/2024 – Botafogo 4 x 1 Flamengo – Brasileirão

15/09/2024 – Flamengo 1 x 1 Vasco – Brasileirão

Even with the 1-1 draw against Vasco last Sunday (15), Flamengo maintained its unbeaten record in the classic in 2024. Rubro-Negro left ahead with a goal from Gerson, but the rival equalized at the end with Coutinho. The aggregate score in clashes against Vasco this season is 7 to 2 in favor of Mengão.

Currently, Flamengo occupies the fourth place in the Brazilian Championship table, with 45 points. Under Tite's command, the team has 13 wins, six draws and six defeats, with 40 goals scored and 29 conceded.

Flamengo returns to the field for the Brasileirão next Sunday (22), at 6:30 pm (Brasília time), for the 27th round, when they will face Grêmio in Porto Alegre. Before that, Rubro-Negro will have another important challenge.

Next Thursday (19), Flamengo will face Peñarol (URU) at Maracanã, in a match valid for the quarter-finals of the Libertadores. The ball rolls at 7pm (Brasília time), and Mengão will seek to take the lead in the continental clash.