The grand final duel of the first edition of the Flamengo Adidas Cup U-16, the largest international youth football competition ever held in Brazil, has been set. In the semifinals played on the morning of this Wednesday (7), the Garotos do Ninho beat Atlético MG 3-1, while the Mexicans from Santos Laguna overcame São Paulo 3 (7) x (6) 3, in an exciting duel from start to finish. Both teams arrive undefeated in the final, which is scheduled for next Friday (9), at 9 am, on field 3 of CT George Helal.

Ninho Boys win with authority

Flamengo faced Atlético MG in the first semifinal match. And they won with relative ease. The Most Beloved were already dominating the game when, in the 18th minute, Bill received the ball at the edge of the box and fired a beautiful shot, opening the scoring for Mengão. Seven minutes into the second half, Ronald equalized for the Minas Gerais team with a cross-shot, adding to the excitement of the match.

But Rubro-Negro was superior in the game, and took the lead again in the 24th minute. After intense pressure and numerous shots, David fired a cross-shot past goalkeeper Santiago. There was still time for Mengão to score the third, with a beautiful shot from outside the box by Lorran in the 30th minute, which sealed the third victory for the Ninho Boys in four matches.

Flamengo: Caio Barone, Daniel Sales (Gusttavo), Victor Thiago, Pedro Lemos (Julio), Germano (Lucyan); Luis Guilherme (Schlickmann), Menegatti (Guilherme Gomes), Lorran; Felipe Teresa (David), Bill (Luan Andrey) and Felipe Lima. Coach: Eduardo Zuma.

In an exciting duel, Santos Laguna (MEX) eliminates São Paulo

In the second semifinal match, Santos Laguna (MEX) and São Paulo fought hard for a spot in the final. Tahiel Jimenez, Stephano Carrillo, and José Ulloa scored for the Mexicans, and Lucas Ferreira, Ryan Santos, and Augusto Loureiro scored for São Paulo in a 3-3 draw. On penalties, Santos Laguna won 7-6, and they will repeat their first-round match against Flamengo (a 1-1 draw) in the final.