Three days after dueling for the Brazilian Championship, Atlético-MG and Flamengo re-edited one of the main classics of national football, now for the Copa do Brasil. And the winner was the same as the weekend. At Mineirão, Galo defeated the red-black carioca by 2 to 1, with goals from Hulk, Ademir and Lázaro, opening an advantage in the series valid for the round of 16.
The return duel will be played on July 13, at 9:30 pm, at Maracanã. And Atlético-MG, with the result obtained this Wednesday (22), will be able to draw to advance to the quarterfinals. Flamengo will need to win by at least two goals to qualify, with a triumph by the minimum difference taking the match to penalties.
Last Sunday, Atlético-MG and Flamengo had dueled for the Brasileirão, at Mineirão, with Galo winning 2-0. And the duels had some coincidences, as the second goal of the two matches was scored by Ademir after a pass from Hulk. And the Minas Gerais team also lost a player due to injury in the first half of each confrontation: Jair, on Sunday (19), and Keno, this Wednesday.
The main difference this night was Hulk, now with 21 goals in 27 games for Atlético-MG this season. Author of a goal in the opening minutes of the match, he was the highlight of the confrontation, having built the second play, at the beginning of the final stage. And it gave even more tranquility to the coach Turco Mohamed, who arrived at the clashes with Flamengo under pressure, but now regains his breath after beating the opponent twice in a row.
It is a scenario opposite to that of Dorival Júnior, who took over Flamengo recently and only won once, now with three defeats. And again, the team showed low offensive production in the crowded Mineirão, which received 53,953 fans.
Before this great encounter in the round of 16 of the Copa do Brasil, Atlético-MG and Flamengo had debuted in the competition only in the third phase, as they were involved in Libertadores. And they passed through Brasiliense and Altos-PI, respectively. In the history of the competition, the teams dueled twice: the team from Rio de Janeiro did better in the quarterfinals of 2006 and the team from Minas Gerais gave the change in the semifinals of 2014.
How was the game
Just three days after facing each other at Mineirão for the Brazilian Championship, the teams returned to the stadium with some news. On the Atlético-MG side, Turco Mohamed only promoted the entry of Otávio in the midfield, in place of Jair, as it happened in the first half of the previous confrontation, because of a left hand injury.
In Flamengo, Dorival opted for the return of Filipe Luís and Willian Arão, who took the place of Vitinho, in an action to strengthen the midfield after the 2-0 setback, leaving the team with three defensive midfielders. The change even gave the Carioca team more possession, even as a visitor. However, it did not prevent the team from being leaked in the opponent’s first dangerous offensive action.
Betting on a quick transition to attack, Atlético-MG soon opened the scoring. In the 7th minute, Mariano gave a long throw to Hulk, who, with the ball bouncing, played over Diego Alves, at the entrance of the penalty area: Galo 1 to 0.
The early goal reinforced the positions of the teams, with Flamengo having more possession of the ball in the offensive field during the rest of the first half. The carioca team even had an opportunity, with Andreas Pereira, at 11, in a shot defended by Everson, but it lacked creativity, being ineffective.
Atlético-MG, in turn, presented defensive security and took few risks, while waiting for an opportunity to counterattack. But he ended the first half with a low, as he lost Keno, injured, replaced by Ademir.
The game scenario did not change at the beginning of the final stage, but with a big difference. The counterattack expected by Atlético-MG came 10 minutes into the second half. And by Hulk’s feet. After Matheuzinho’s pass error, Nacho activated the striker, who advanced on the left and crossed to Ademir, with his head, making it 2-0.
The goal bewildered the lack of organization that Flamengo had at Mineirão and even led Dorival to make three changes at once, with the additions of Rodinei, Lázaro and Pedro. But Atlético-MG started to find more spaces and could have increased the score, with Nacho, at 23, and with Allan, at 29.
But the goal did not come out and Flamengo managed to reduce their losses with the decisive participation of two reserves. In the 35th minute, Rodinei crossed the second post and Lázaro finished. Everson tried the defense with his feet, but to no avail.
The goal, of course, encouraged Flamengo, who tried to get a tie at the end of the match. But Atlético-MG knew how to control the opponent and even hit the post in extra time, with Calebe. Thus, he secured the victory and the advantage for the return clash, at Maracanã.
Schedule
After two duels between them, the teams will return to the field next Saturday for the 14th round of the Brazilian Championship. Flamengo will host América-MG at 7pm at Maracanã, while Atlético-MG will face Fortaleza at 9pm at Mineirão.
Source: CNN Brasil
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