VINÍCIUS SOUZA EX-FLAMENGO SHINES IN THE PREMIER LEAGUE WITH IMPRESSIVE NUMBERS

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.

Last Tuesday, the candidate for re-election for mayor of Rio de Janeiro, Eduardo Paes, denied the journalist Ancelmo Gois, from Globo. In a post on Instagram, the mayor informed that the city hall will be responsible for removing the megastructure on the gas meter site, different from what was reported. Furthermore, he guaranteed that Flamengo will have its new stadium, with the best conditions and security.

The news published by Ancelmo informs that Flamengo would have to pay R$100 million to remove a large gas structure present on land acquired by the club, which is owned by CEG and CEG-Rio, which are companies that are part of the gas concessionaire Naturgy.

According to the article, the companies were informed that Flamengo is the responsible for bearing the expenses, as provided for in one of the annexes to the land purchase and transfer contract. The clause, however, does not have a specified limit.

Paes stated that the values ​​for the transfer of the structure are different from what was pointed out in the article by Ancelmo Gois. Furthermore, it exempted Flamengo from any responsibility, and that the city hall has been planning to remove it for years.

“They are making me defend @flamengo more than I would like: let it be clear that this is not the The cost of this transfer and when it happens will be the responsibility of the city of Rio, which knows that this structure cannot be in an area that is already receiving so many residential buildings. It's been in our plans for a long time! Flamengo will have its new stadium there in the gasometer with all the quality and safety that the region demands and deserves. Period!”, published the mayor.

Tite, current coach of Flamengo, was direct when commenting on the tight calendar of Brazilian football and the idea of ​​sparing players amid the intense sequence of games. In a recent interview, he spared no criticism of the current competition model in the country and made it clear that, contrary to what many suggest, he has no intention of arbitrarily preserving players in decisive moments.

Tite's main criticism revolves around the excess of games throughout the season. The Brazilian calendar is historically tight, with competitions such as the Brazilian Championship, the Copa do Brasil, the Libertadores, and, in years of the World Cup or Copa América, there is still the weight of international team tournaments. This scenario means that clubs, especially the big ones, have to deal with an exorbitant number of matches in a short space of time, which increases the wear and tear on players and, consequently, the risk of injuries.

However, despite this situation, the coach made it clear that it is not in his plans to adopt a strategy of rotating players indiscriminately. "No one spares", said Tite, in response to suggestions that Flamengocould rest its main athletes in some games. He highlighted that sparing athletes without a clear justification, just with the intention of preserving the squad, would be a risky attitude, especially considering the pressure for immediate results in a club of Flamengo's magnitude.

Tite was also emphatic when explaining that, when making decisions about the lineup, he takes into account several factors, including the physical condition of the athletes, the importance of the match and the team's long-term planning. "Am I going to save my job? Put my job at risk?", joked the coach, highlighting that, in a club with pressure and expectations like Flamengo, a bad result can be costly, including a coach's position.

The Brazilian football calendar is one of the most intense in the world. While in many European countries clubs play, on average, between 45 and 50 matches per season, in Brazil this number easily exceeds 70, considering all competitions. Furthermore, long trips between states, climate variations and the difference in the quality of lawns contribute to the wear and tear of athletes.