Guilherme celebrates: Flamengo's number 10 scored the second goal in the victory over Inter, in the Brazilian Under-20 Championship.

Photos: Adriano Fontes/CRF

The goals scored in the first half gave Flamengo a 2-0 victory over Internacional this Wednesday (30), at the José Bastos Padilha Stadium, in Gávea, in the eighth round of the Brazilian Under-20 Championship. The team reached 13 points and provisionally occupies fifth place. Defender Iago, from a free kick, and number 10 Guilherme scored.

Flamengo started the game on the attack, marking the opposing defense's ball out, looking to open the scoring early. The team threatened with a few plays, while Inter only came into their own after 15 minutes, with plays well controlled by the defensive system led by defender Iago and goalkeeper Lucas Furtado.

The match still lacked significant scoring chances until the 31st minute, when Iago perfectly converted a free kick from Jorge Mora on the left side of the attack. The red-and-black captain fired a powerful cross into the left corner of the goalkeeper's net. The goal gave the team confidence, and they nearly extended their lead with a play from Iago and Pedrinho.

Despite having a stronger attacking presence, Rubro-Negro often lacked the final pass, as seen in a Mora play in the 39th minute, which was eventually cleared by the defense. A minute later, Shola crossed, and Pedrinho headed over the bar. The second goal came shortly after, with a perfect ball from Mora to Guilherme, who controlled it with his chest and put it past the goalkeeper, scoring the second.

Inter threatened in the 41st minute with a cross from the right, but Lucas Furtado saved well in the right corner. From the corner kick, they fired another shot, this time over the bar. Flamengo, in turn, accelerated the game and came out strong with Rayan, Daniel, and Shola, but their opponents cleared the ball.

Just like in the first half, both teams' attacking moves after the break didn't give the goalkeepers much trouble. In the 13th minute, however, Lucão had to work hard after a quick counterattack from Inter, which ended with a good save from Flamengo's number 1. Shola responded and almost had a clear shot on goal, but he pushed the ball forward a bit.

With the advantage, Flamengo tried to pass the ball around a lot and rotate the game to find gaps in the Colorado defense, but they couldn't create many chances. The team also struggled to win possession in the attacking half whenever the opponent tried to play out from the back. In the 36th minute, Wanderson headed dangerously after a corner kick, the only significant scoring chance of the second half.

Before the match against Inter began, coach Nuno Campos, who led the team for the first time in Gávea, from the sidelines, spoke in an interview with Flamengo TV about the match against the team from Rio Grande do Sul and also about the work philosophy he has been implementing since his arrival.

"Every game is important to us, because as part of Flamengo, we must always be prepared to win any game. It's a premise, regardless of the opponent. Then there are much bigger objectives to always achieve. If we compare it to the match against Cruzeiro, who were in first place and we won at their home ground, in the following game we had the honor of having three players from the first team on the bench in a Libertadores match. This is an important victory in a work that is just beginning," said the Portuguese coach, adding that the new guidelines require some time to be implemented.

"It's a job that will take some time to see the results of developing players for the first team. We also have the advantage of having a great coach (Filipe Luís) in the first team, with a very good playing model. This means the players have to prepare very well so that when they get to work with the first team, they'll be closer to being ready to play and acquire other skills and demonstrate their worth," he added.

Brazilian Under-20 Championship - 8th round
Flamengo 2 x 0 Internacional
Date: 30 / 04 / 2025
Location: José Bastos Padilha Stadium - Gávea

Coach: Nuno Gomes.