NEW HIRING IN THE AREA! FLAMENGO TAKES ANOTHER PLAYER FROM VASCO TO REINFORCE THE BASE

This Saturday morning (7), Flamengo faced Nova Iguaçu and won 2-0, in the first game of the quarter-finals of the Carioca U20. The team led by Filipe Luís opened a good lead for the second leg. The goals of the match were scored by Guilherme and Wallace Yan.

In the qualifying phase, Mais Querido, despite sharing the spotlight with the Brasileirão under-20 and preparing for the World Cup, had a good campaign. Rubro-Negro advanced in second place, with 26 points from 11 games. Winning eight matches, drawing two and losing only once.

Mixing the team between the main team and the reserves during the competition, the team also had alternation between coaches. This is because Rafael Bahia led Rubro-Negro in the Carioca under-20 and Filipe Luís led the team in the Brasileirão and World Cup in the category.

Now, Mais Querido returns to the field next Saturday (14), in the return match of the quarter-finals of the Carioca under-20. By having a 2-0 lead on the scoreboard, Rubro-Negro can lose by up to a goal difference and will advance to the semi-finals. The game will be at 9:30 am, in Gávea.

Nigerian striker Elija Shola renewed his residence visa, guaranteeing his stay in Brazil for another five years. The renewal of the permission was requested by Flamengo to the Federal Government. Furthermore, the player signed a new contract with the club, which is now valid until the end of 2027.

Although Shola has not yet debuted for Flamengo's professional team, he was listed for the classic against Flamengo. Botafogo, which ended with a 4-1 defeat at the Nilton Santos stadium. The striker was one of the highlights of Flamengo's under-20 team, which won the Libertadores and Intercontinental in the category.

Last month, Flamengo reached an agreement with Remo Stars, Shola's former club , purchasing 70% of the athlete's economic rights for 450 thousand dollars. The 19-year-old Nigerian has been on loan at Flamengo since April 2023. His last residence visa was valid for six months and expired in September 2024.

Shola was first scouted during the Viareggio Cup 2022, traditional grassroots tournament held in the Tuscany region, in Italy. He stood out as one of the main figures of his team, helping them reach the final of the tournament. Following this observation, Flamengo sent a scout to Nigeria to evaluate him again, confirming his signing shortly afterwards.

Flamengo's new under-17 coach, Filipe Luís, has received a new reinforcement for the season. The new commander of Mais Querido will have in his squad 16-year-old center forward Filipy Teixeira, who left Vasco's youth ranks to join Rubro Negro.

According to information from Youtuber Flazoeiro and the "Flabase" portal , Lipão, as Filipy is known, was prominent in Vasco's youth categories and won 19 titles since under-13. His main title was the Carioca Under-17 Championship, in 2022, in which the player was part of the squad at just 15 years old and scored two goals. Filipy was also the team's second top scorer in winning the Guilherme Embry Under-16 Tournament.

The striker will be integrated into the squad led by Filipe Luís and will begin preparation for the season. He will have about a month to adapt to Mais Querido and the former Rubro Negro player's training until the first competition on the calendar, which will be the Copa Rio, which is scheduled to start in early March.

Filipe Luís gave recent interviews where he left some clues about how he intends to set up his teams as Flamengo coach. The former Mais Querido full-back highlighted the importance of all the club's categories being adapted to Rubro Negro's aggressive and offensive style.

"My style is Flamengo. You just have to see how the fans want me to play the Flamengo, that's how I want them to play. Everything prepared, everything designed. But now it's time to put it into practice. Because it's one thing for me to think, as a player. I can influence some of my teammates on the field. But as a coach I won't be there in the field. I don't know if I'll be able to convince, as it is at the beginning. But you can be sure that's my thinking.”