Flamengo will host Athletico Paranaense in the first match of the game week in the Brasileiro. Mengao moved up to fourth place in the table over the weekend, five points ahead of El Paranaense in seventh. The runners-up in the last Libertadores fought to a 1-1 tie with Atletico Mineiro. It handed the league-leading Botafogo their first home loss of the domestic season (2-1).
Preview (Flamengo vs. Athletico Paranaense)
Flamengo’s reign as Copa Libertadores champions came to an end in the round of 16 against Olimpia (3-2 on aggregate) nearly a month after their dramatic second-half collapse. Flamengo is now starting to move up the Serie A table after going unbeaten in four straight league games and without a loss in their last five competitive contests. This club is currently holding down the final Copa Libertadores berth in the table. They only separated themselves from Palmeiras in second place by two points. There looks to be greater peace among the group after the incident came to light.
Despite that, Jorge Sampaoli continued to lead this club. The players responded by winning three of their last four games overall and making it to the Copa do Brasil final. Flamengo hasn’t suffered a competitive home loss since April 30 (3-2 against Botafogo). In their last four games played in Rio de Janeiro, they have only lost once.
While they have failed to win a league game this season when they concede the first goal (three draws and one loss), they have recovered to grab one point in two of their previous three domestic home games. The team of Wesley Carvalho has recovered from deficits in each of their previous two home matches. They have also failed to earn points away from Arena da Baixada. They conceded an equalizing goal in each of their most recent two away games against Goias (1-1) and Santos (1-1). This squad may not be able to win the league because they are now 17 points behind Botafogo. They have a good chance of qualifying for the 2024 Libertadores because they are only one point behind Bragantino.
Team News
Guillermo Varela, who has a painful knee, might be out for another week. Giorgian de Arrascaeta and Luiz Araujo are still out with thigh ailments. In their match against Fogo last weekend, Mengao took an early lead thanks to an own goal from Marlon Freitas. Bruno Henrique then scored the game-winning goal with 17 minutes remaining. Matheus Cunha made six saves out of seven to help his team earn all three points. Pedro was the only one of those three to score in this specific matchup last year. Fabricio Bruno scored a brace, but Henrique has eight goals overall against El Paranaense. Pedro has seven, and Gabriel Barbosa has six.
Due to a fractured ankle, Pedro Henrique is anticipated to miss this match for Furacao. Christian and Bento are both expected to miss it due to thigh injuries, Fernandinho will not play after receiving a red card on Saturday, and Vinicius Kaue is eligible to make his comeback from suspension. With his 11 domestic goals this season, Vitor Roque has just two fewer than Botafogo’s Tiquinho Soares in the battle for the Golden Boot. He scored the equalizing goal for them in their tie on Saturday. The most recent league match between these two teams this year ended with El Paranaense winning 2-1 at home against Flamengo thanks to goals from Roque and Erick, as Bento turned aside two of the three shots he faced.
Flamengo 3 – 1 Athletico Paranaense
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