After a strong performance in the first phase of the South American Basketball League, Flamengo returned to Rio de Janeiro to continue working toward the season's remaining challenges. Speaking exclusively to the official website, coach José Neto analyzed the training sessions and projected their participation in the Avianca Cup, which begins next week.
FlaBasquete continues to prepare for the Copa Avianca and the South American League in the coming days, training daily at the Hélio Maurício gym, in Gávea.
Having worked since returning from Colombia, Neto spoke about the importance of this time before the next challenges begin.
"It's a very important training period for us, especially because we went into this first part of the competition in a condition far below what the team is capable of. However, it was enough for us to return with first place and three wins. Now it's time to correct what we observed and improve, improve what we did well, continue to be more efficient, and seek better cohesion. It's a good squad and will be very competitive this season. I believe that, with this training period, the team will be even better," he explained.
Neto also added that it's important to conduct tests and observe the squad. "It's very important to have this time now, since we'll be playing the Copa Avianca later. We aim to train and prepare the team for the Copa Sudamericana. There are six games in seven days, a very short period. No other competition in the world has this format, so we'll carefully consider how we'll deploy the players, because the following week we have a very important stage of the League. We'll get the team playing and getting into match rhythm," he said.
"It's a very important training period for us, especially because we went into this first part of the competition in a condition far below what the team is capable of. However, it was enough for us to return with first place and three wins. Now it's time to correct what we observed and improve, improve what we did well, continue to be more efficient, and seek better cohesion. It's a good squad and will be very competitive this season. I believe that, with this training period, the team will be even better," he explained.
Neto also added that it's important to conduct tests and observe the squad. "It's very important to have this time now, since we'll be playing the Copa Avianca later. We aim to train and prepare the team for the Copa Sudamericana. There are six games in seven days, a very short period. No other competition in the world has this format, so we'll carefully consider how we'll deploy the players, because the following week we have a very important stage of the League. We'll get the team playing and getting into match rhythm," he said.
Next week, The Most Beloved goes to Belo Horizonte, in Minas Gerais, to compete in the Avianca Cup. The tournament will be held between October 25th and 31st.
"In the Copa Avianca, we're focused on our performance and improving our game rhythm, improving our defense and offense. We want to better prepare for the next stage of the South American League. Our focus is on Flamengo. We're not obligated to exploit the weaknesses of the teams that will be there; we'll be focused on what we can do as a squad, as a team. Our main objective is the South American. We'll go after victory regardless of who's on the court," said Neto.
José Neto also analyzed the group at the start of the season. "Our expectations for results are high. I think it would be reckless to say it's excellent at the moment; there are several areas we can improve. I believe that, as time goes by, this team will become increasingly cohesive. Defensively, we have to be very consistent. We've already shown that we have strong defense and players who can maintain a strong rhythm. We want to explore a lot from there. We have to play a back-to-front game, that is, from defense to attack," concluded the coach.
FlaBasquete continues to prepare for the Copa Avianca and the South American League in the coming days, training daily at the Hélio Maurício gym, in Gávea.