Inspired by the main team, Garotos do Ninho seek a place in the final of the U-20 Libertadores
Flamengo will face Danubio-URU in Asunción, this Thursday (13), at 19 pm, in the semifinals of the competition.
By nelson coast - inPhoto: Conmebol
Having qualified for the Libertadores semifinals, Flamengo's under-20 team remains in Asunción, where they have been based since February 27th for the competition. The Garotos do Ninho took first place in group 1 with two wins and a draw. The match for a spot in the final will be against Danubio-URU, next Thursday (13), at 19 pm, at Gunther Vogel Stadium.
Always striving to serve professional football, the philosophy of all youth teams is to ensure their players meet coach Filipe Luís's demands as closely as possible. And the U-20s are no exception. Coach Cleber dos Santos develops the team's game plan and develops strategies based on this philosophy.
"From the beginning of our training, our focus was on strengthening the team's identity by implementing a game model that highlights Flamengo's DNA. Our main goal is to have an organized team that dominates through passing, engaging the opponent, to create as many shots as possible. The professional team is a great inspiration because they play this type of game very effectively, and the main goal of the training is to ensure that the U-20 athletes are as prepared as possible to serve them," said the coach.
That's how the Mais Querido defeated Danubio 3-1 in the group stage, the same opponent they faced in the semifinals. In this match, the red-and-black team exchanged 697 passes, coming very close to the 738 made by the senior team in their 2-0 victory over Volta Redonda on the 25th of last month, in one of the most exciting performances of the year. Cleber hopes the boys can repeat this performance and, most importantly, the result.
"We'll face Danúbio again, who play in a low, compact block, exploiting transitions. We've been able to observe this opponent's behavior well in the three group stage matches, and we'll have to be at our best in terms of concentration, mental balance, passing accuracy, and finishing efficiency," he believes.
In addition to defeating the Uruguayan team, Flamengo delivered a resounding 6-1 thrashing of Olimpia, who were playing at home, and drew 0-0 with O'Higgins, already securing qualification and first place in the group. The coach took advantage of this match to manage the injured players, get the squad back into game rhythm, and enter the semifinals even stronger. Despite the 80-XNUMX draw, Flamengo had XNUMX% of the possession and came very close to winning.
"Early qualification allowed us to give all our players the opportunity to start a match in the U-20 Copa Libertadores. In the third match, we controlled the cards so that we would have everyone ready to compete in the semifinals," Cleber concluded.