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Just like last year, Flamengo is on track to repeat a season of frustration and lack of relevant titles, the result of mismatches in the strategies adopted on the field and off it. The defeat in the quarter-finals of the Libertadores, yesterday, against Peñarol (Uruguay), once again highlighted the poor work of Tite and his coaching staff. All marked by disastrous errors of route led by the board of Rodolfo Landim, Marcos Braz and company, in the midst of a tumultuous calendar of games and an unusual number of injuries in the squad.

Increasingly closer to a new square one in the coaching position, as there is no indication that Tite will have his contract renewed, the red-black player can only close 2024 with the Campeonato Carioca title, something derisory for the expectations generated by one of the most powerful squads in South America. From now on, GLOBO explains why this season turned into a disaster.

1 - Coaching committee did not work

In the scenario of Brazilian coaches, Tite still presents himself as the best name, and is accompanied by a vast committee and well divided among competent people. However, it didn't fit into Flamengo. The work that began in October 2023 had the mission of organizing the squad and guaranteeing a place in the Libertadores. For this year, the idea was to evolve red-black football and make national and international achievements natural. At the same time, the Gaucho's six-year stint with the national team changed his football profile.

Before proposing more aggressive football, see Corinthians, Tite is looking for more of a positional game these days. Again, Flamengo's squad did not appear to be the most adept at this. Since the unforgettable 2019 season, the pillars of this team, such as Arrascaeta, Gerson, Bruno Henrique and even Gabigol, have worked in a more mobile scheme. Far from this characteristic, offensive sterility prevails, in addition to defensive fragility that has never been resolved.

2 - Poor management of priorities

In a calendar that can border on 70 or 80 games in Brazil, teams that set out to go far in all competitions are ironically punished with the wear and tear of their players. But this is a reality far from a solution, requiring a choice of priorities, and Flamengo chose to "embrace the world". After not winning anything in 2023, they wanted to start the new season with all their strength, and won Carioca absolutely.

The least demanding competition of the year, however, gave the wrong impression. Meanwhile, the club undermined its campaign in the Libertadores group stage, finishing in second place and always needing to decide away from home in the knockout stages. Already in the midst of the Brazilian Championship, in which the club is fourth, 11 points behind leader Botafogo, it is preferred to save money to focus on knockout competitions, a policy that has been in place since 2021 and was only successful in the following season. Now, virtually only the Copa do Brasil remains — semi-final against Corinthians.

3 - Calendar ripple effect

This season also brought an extra challenge: the Copa América, which removed five players (Arrascaeta, De La Cruz, Viña, Varela and Pulgar) from Flamengo from various mid-year commitments, as the CBF did not stop its calendar in the middle of the dispute. Although the team performed well during the period, the physical part was taken to the extreme, with the remaining players needing to make extra efforts. To conclude, those called up returned, but also in a fragile situation and the team "crumbled".

4 - Too many injuries

The imponderable factor also helps explain a season that follows the script of failure. The main one: losing Pedro, the team's top scorer, for the rest of the year, due to a serious knee injury in a training session with the Brazilian team. Important names, such as Everton Cebolinha and Matías Viña, were also permanently injured. Injuries in the red and black team appear excessively in 2024.

It is worth noting that the spate of recurring muscular problems is also due to Flamengo's inability to choose their priorities. If all athletes play on all fronts, the bill will arrive at some point. In April, Diogo Dantas' blog reported that Tite's rotation at Flamengo was more concerned with performance than injuries. In the end, so many physical problems make it impossible to maintain a standard of play that meets expectations.

5 - Late window in the middle of the year

Chasing losses only when they already appear is one of the red-black management's most serious mistakes. There is no shortage of money for the club with the highest revenue in South America, which made Argentine Carlos Alcaraz its biggest signing of all time. The mid-year package still had Michael (injured), Alex Sandro and Gonzalo Plata, but bringing them in at the last minute still had little effect and revealed the lack of planning, while the opponents did it in an organized manner. Yesterday, Alcaraz didn't even step on the field in Uruguay.

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This Sunday (29), Flamengo faces Athletico-PR at Maracanã, in the 28th round of the Brazilian Championship. For the confrontation, coach Tite will have six absences: Pedro, Everton Cebolinha, Matías Viña, Michael, Luiz Araújo and Carlinhos.

Pedro, Cebolinha and Viña will not play again this season, with only expected return in 2025. Luiz Araújo is still recovering from a knee injury, while Carlinhos is suspended after receiving a red card in the last round against Grêmio, due to the attack on defender Kannemann.

Despite not participating in the game against Athletico-PR, Michael is already in the final stages of recovery and should be available for the first leg of the Copa do Brasil semi-finals, against Corinthians, on Wednesday (02).

< b>FLAMENGO MISSINGS

Pedro: rupture of the anterior cruciate ligament of the knee

Everton Cebolinha: rupture of the Achilles tendon

Michael: injury muscle in the right thigh

Matías Viña: ligament rupture in the knee

Luiz Araújo: fracture in the knee cartilage

Carlinhos: suspended

FLAMENGO Mengão, which occupies fourth place in the table with 45 points, is looking for just its second victory in the last eight games of the competition.

Flamengo's early elimination from the Libertadores caused a series of damages to the club. In addition to postponing the tetra's dream, Rubro-Negro also faced financial difficulties. Among the sporting goals established for the season was the objective of reaching the Libertadores semi-final.

The expectation was also to finish, at least, in second place in the Brasileirão. Currently, with one game in hand, Flamengo is 11 points behind leader Botafogo and eight behind vice-leader Palmeiras. To mitigate the financial loss, it is crucial that Flamengo reaches the final of the Copa do Brasil, the only competition in which the club has met its sporting goals so far.

In the program “Finanças do Esporte”, the journalist Rodrigo Mattos, from UOL, detailed Flamengo's possibilities for gains and losses this season.

“If it reaches the final (of the Copa do Brasil), it makes up for what happened in the Libertadores, it even surpasses it. But I would need this classification for the final. Otherwise, you have to make compensation, sell a little more player because it's an impact of R$12.5 million, plus the box office that you also estimate. Flamengo in the Libertadores semi-final is worth R$4 or 5 million in revenue”, said Rodrigo.

Flamengo raised less than Fluminense and São Paulo in the Libertadores

< With the elimination against Peñarol, Flamengo stopped collecting R$12.5 million. If he had become champion, the total prize pool in the competition would have reached R$137.5 million. Thus, the search for the third consecutive final of the Copa do Brasil becomes even more crucial, as the club would receive R$31.5 million. If they won the title, this amount could rise to R$73.5 million.

Having played one less match than their competitors, Flamengo ended their participation in the Libertadores with R$37.7 million in revenue, while Fluminense and São Paulo raised R$39.5 million each.