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Guaranteed in the round of 16

U-20s come from behind to beat Noroeste at their opponent's home and qualify for the knockout stage

By - in
On Thursday afternoon (January 09.01), the under-20 soccer team faced the host of Group I of the São Paulo Cup, Noroeste, at the Alfredo de Castilho stadium. The team came from behind to win in a thrilling 3-2 match, with goals from Rafael Dumas (2) and Thiago Santos. The result, combined with Aquidauanense's 1-0 victory over Santo André, took Mais Querido to the round of XNUMX of the Copinha as leader of its group, with seven points.

The match began with pressure from Flamengo. Just three minutes in, Renan Donizete received the ball on the left and shot it just wide of the opposing goalkeeper's post. Two minutes later, Cafu unleashed a powerful shot into the corner of Guilherme's goal. In the sixth minute, after a beautiful Flamengo play, a penalty was awarded to Flamengo, which the penalty taker missed. Noroeste opened the scoring with Douglas shortly after the play. The Flamengo boys continued the first half in search of an equalizer, but were eventually stopped by Flamengo's defense.

Early in the second half, Noroeste extended their lead to 2-0. Flamengo responded a few minutes later, with a rebound from Cafu's free kick, which he fired into the corner, forcing Guilherme to palm away. The ball fell to Dumas, who slotted it into the net. Flamengo had a chance to equalize with another penalty kick, but Noroeste's goalkeeper made a great save. In the 39th minute, Flamengo equalized with what appeared to be a replay of the first goal: Cafu took a powerful free kick from the sidelines, Guilherme palmed it forward, and Rafael Dumas scored his second. In the 44th minute, Flamengo turned the game around. Thiago Santos received the ball at speed and beat the red-and-white goalkeeper to secure a spot in the round of XNUMX of the Copinha.

"We went in a bit distracted, thinking we were going to win at any moment. Football is about alertness. It was a hard-fought victory, but a great achievement," celebrated Flamengo midfielder Caio Rangel.