With a wealth of character, grit, and maturity, Flamengo overcame its toughest opponent to date in the U-20 Brazil Cup and, for the first time in the competition's history, has qualified for the semifinals. Deciding away from home against the experienced Bahia team, the current runner-up, and with key absences – Hugo Moura suffered a broken toe and underwent surgery, Jean Lucas had his wisdom tooth removed, and Vinícius Junior was recently integrated into the professional squad – Flamengo also suffered during the decisive match played on Wednesday afternoon (May 10.05) at Pituaçu Stadium in Salvador, as midfielder Theo was sent off in the first minutes of the second half, with the Red-Blacks already trailing 1-0. Despite all the setbacks, the "Garotos do Ninho" (Little Boys) fought back to equalize and remain undefeated. Their next opponent will be Avaí. The first game will be in Rio de Janeiro, next Thursday (18.05), at 18 pm, with no location yet defined and with live broadcast on SporTV and ESPN Brasil. The return match will take place, in principle, on 24.05, at Ressacada in Florianópolis, with no time yet defined.

Focused on the most important game of the season so far, the "Garotos do Ninho" (Nest Boys) entered the field aware of the difficulties they would face and managed to control the match in the opening minutes. However, in the 13th minute, Bahia opened the scoring in a controversial play, as their position was in doubt. Despite this, the Rubro-Negro quickly regained their composure and created the best chances. In the 22nd minute, Gabriel Silva passed the ball to João Pedro, who got to the bottom but shot straight at the goalkeeper. In the 30th minute, defender Rafael rose up the pitch as a surprise man and delivered a perfect cross to Lincoln, who mistimed the ball and wasted the opportunity. Soon after, João Pedro took a good shot from outside the box, but the goalkeeper palmed it away for a corner. 

The Mais Querido returned for the second half with Wesley replacing Michael, who sprained his left knee, and Fabrício replacing João Pedro. In the third minute, Rafael nearly equalized with a dangerous free kick. In the tenth minute, it was Dener's turn to almost find the net, heading in a corner kick from Kleber. In the twelfth minute, Vinícius Souza carried the ball and unleashed a beautiful shot from outside the box. Just when the equalizer seemed certain, Theo committed a hard foul and received a red card in the fourteenth minute.

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Coach Gilmar Popoca replaced striker Lincoln with midfielder Gabriel Magalhães. The change paid off, and even with ten men down, the team reorganized itself, withstood Bahia's pressure, and equalized in the 31st minute when Fabricio took advantage of a defender's mistake to steal the ball and pass it to Gabriel Silva, who struck it first time past the goalkeeper for the crucial goal, giving the Garotos do Ninho a second chance. Flamengo still had time to score a second, but the 1-1 score, besides keeping the team undefeated in the competition, was enough to qualify the Mais Querido for an unprecedented Copa do Brasil U-20 semifinal.

"First, I want to thank God for the goal and for qualifying. It couldn't have been better. Everyone gave their all and left the field exhausted. Everyone gave their lives for Flamengo today, and that's the spirit we must maintain as we pursue our biggest goal, which is the Copa do Brasil title," said Gabriel Silva, who scored the goal that secured Flamengo's qualification.

Flamengo took to the field with Gabriel Batista, Kleber, Dener, Rafael, Michael (Wesley), Theo, Vinicius Souza, Lucas Silva (Loran), Gabriel Silva (Bernardo), João Pedro (Fabricio) and Lincoln (Gabriel Magalhães). Coach: Gilmar Popoca