There was no lack of grit, no lack of desire, no lack of technique, no lack of attention at the end, and most importantly, no lack of goals. Flamengo needed to score twice, they did, and qualified for the quarterfinals of the Brazilian Under-20 Championship. On an inspired night for top scorer Diego Maurício, who assisted the first and scored the second, coach Armênio Moura's team defeated Náutico 2-0 and sealed their place in the next stage of the competition.

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Less than a minute into the match, the team from Gávea already demonstrated that they would do everything possible to get the result they needed to qualify. About 50 seconds into the match, Dieguinho took a shot from outside the box that went just wide of Náutico's goal. The game continued like this throughout the first half. Flamengo pressed, pressed, pressed, and the Pernambuco team only managed to score sporadically, with a few counterattacks.

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Mengão persisted, but the final pass was missing, and the ball wouldn't reach top scorer Diego Maurício, who was isolated in attack. In the 30th minute, however, the number 10 found a solution: he went to get the ball in midfield. It worked. He laid it off to Saba, who threaded a superb pass down the right flank to the same Diego Maurício. In a reversal of roles, the center forward crossed to attacking midfielder Dieguinho, who dove toward the ball to open the scoring for Flamengo.

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The result was favorable, but not positive. The team from Gávea still needed one more goal, and so they didn't take their foot off the gas. In the 35th minute, Galhardo hit a beautiful shot from outside the box, but the ball hit the crossbar, bounced capriciously off the line, and went out. In the 41st minute, Dieguinho had another good chance, but referee Leandro Vuaden blew the offside whistle. The first half ended, the second began, and the scenario was the same: total pressure from Flamengo.

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Armênio Moura brought on forwards Eliabe and Juninho to give his team even more attacking power, and achieved the expected result in the 27th minute. Once again, top scorer Diego Maurício shone. In a beautiful solo play, he cut past the defender and slotted a shot into the corner of the net, scoring his fourth goal of the competition, which was also his seventh, securing qualification for Mengão, who will face Avaí in the quarterfinals on Friday at 18 p.m. in Santa Maria.