Race, love, and passion. It was with this spirit that Flamengo's U-16 team reached its first final of 2023, after defeating Botafogo 1-0 in the semifinal of the Olaria Renovado Cup. João Paulo Camargo scored the only goal of the match. The final will be this Thursday (March 16th), and the red-and-black team's opponent will be chosen between Fluminense and Serrano.

The game

The first half of the match was choppy, with Flamengo struggling to break the deadlock due to the opposing pressure. However, thanks to the quality of the team led by Leonardo Cherede, Mengão found alternatives. Shortly after the timeout, Douglas Telles received the ball on the right and took off. The number 7 burst into the box and tried to surprise the goalkeeper, who made a good save.

After the break, the Flamengo coach instructed the players to make some tactical adjustments to their ball out and pressure on Botafogo. It worked, Flamengo began to dominate the match and quickly opened the scoring! A free kick from the right was deflected back to Mengão, returning to the opponent's box. João Paulo Camargo received the ball, coolly took it away from the goalkeeper, and went off to celebrate.

Even with the changes made by the coach due to the intense heat, the rhythm of the Ninho Boys didn't slow down. Botafogo even tried to equalize late, but the solid red-and-black defense prevented it. Game over, and the Gávea team will defend its U-16 Olaria Renovado Cup title. Last year, in a thrilling match, Mengão defeated Vasco and lifted the trophy for the first time.

Lineup: Léo Nannetti; Guilherme Brito (Hidaka), Yago, João Victor and Italo; Pablo, Lucas Vieira, Joshua (Kaio Nóbrega); Douglas Telles (Bidu), Giovanni Pastri (Tallyson) and João Paulo Camargo (Luiz Phellipe). Coach: Leonardo Cherede.