No time off! Flamengo squad performs this Thursday with a focus on Palmeiras

The Peñarol team arrived in Rio de Janeiro in the early hours of Wednesday (18) for the game against Flamengo in the Libertadores. Before the clash at Maracanã, defender Guzmán Rodríguez sent a message to Mais Querido and highlighted the strength of the Uruguayans.

“We are doing quite well collectively and individually”, said defender Guzmán Rodríguez, to be asked about Peñarol's moment in the season. 

It is worth mentioning that Peñarol had a setback upon arrival in Rio de Janeiro. This is because the Uruguayan flight was scheduled to arrive at 7pm this past Tuesday (17). However, with delay, the players disembarked at the end of the day.

“The plan was to arrive two days early precisely for this reason, to have time to rest”, said Ignacio Ruglio, president of the Montevideo team.< /p>

FOCUS ON THE CONFRONT

Flamengo will hold its last training session this Wednesday (18) before facing Peñarol on Thursday (19). The teams enter the field at 7pm, at Maracanã, for the first game of the Libertadores quarter-finals.

The Peñarol (URU) team was excited from the beginning of the trip to Rio de Janeiro, where they will face Flamengo, in the quarter-finals of the Libertadores. In addition to cheering the players on the flight towards the 'Marvelous City', the Uruguayans posted a montage of Christ the Redeemer with the club's flag.

As soon as they landed on Rio de Janeiro soil, the Uruguayan club published an image of a of the city's main tourist attractions. In addition to the photo, the team wrote the following message: “Peñarol em Rio”, alluding to Rock In Rio. Afterwards, a video showing the arrival of the athletes at Galeão Airport was also published.

Peñarol reached the quarterfinals of the Libertadores after beating The Strongest (BOL) in the round of 16. In the first game, the Uruguayan team defeated their opponent 4-0. On the way back, the Bolivian team even won by a score of 1-0, however, it was not enough to take away the classification of Diego Aguirre's men.

Before the game against Flamengo, Peñarol played in the Championship Uruguayan. On Saturday (14), Rubro-Negro's opponent beat Rampla (URU), by a score of 4 to 0. Given this situation, they remained undefeated in the national tournament.

Flamengo is coming off a bitter draw with Vasco on Sunday (15), however, they will have reinforcements for this Thursday's duel (19). Recovered from a thigh injury, De La Cruz is back in the team. In addition to the Uruguayan, Alex Sandro, Alcaraz and Gonzalo Plata were registered in the competition and, as a result, will be included in the clash.

After three consecutive days of training, the Flamengo squad got a break last Sunday (08). Now, the players return to activities this Monday (09), preparing for the clash against Bahia, next Thursday (12), valid for the second leg of the quarter-finals of the Copa do Brasil. In training last Saturday (07), Léo Ortiz scored a bicycle goal, on the same day that Mengão received a visit from George Hellal, former President of the club that names the Training Center, in Ninho do Urubu.

According to 'Coluna do Fla', the club's technical committee scheduled the athletes' reappearance for 9:30 am (Brasília time) this Monday. In addition to training, Flamengo will officially present its fourth reinforcement of this transfer window: striker Gonzalo Plata. The press conference with the new player is scheduled for 1pm, at CT Ninho do Urubu.

Gonzalo Plata will only be the fourth Ecuadorian to wear the Sacred Mantle and tries to be the first of them to shine for the Most Dear.

Flamengo takes advantage of the three days break, resulting from the FIFA Data break, to focus on the next challenge. The team will face Bahia at Maracanã, on September 12th, in the second leg of the quarterfinals of the Copa do Brasil. Having won the first leg 1-0, at Arena Fonte Nova, in Salvador, Rubro-Negro only needs a draw to guarantee their place in the tournament's semi-finals. If they advance, Flamengo will face the winner of the clash between Corinthians and Juventude.