Flamengo's Under-17 team has qualified for the quarter-finals of the Copa do Brasil. The Garotos do Ninho thrashed América-MG 3-0 (Yuri de Oliveira, Rhyan and Reinier) this Thursday (25), and are now preparing to face São Paulo in the next phase. After the match held at Gávea, coach Phelipe Leal commented on the triumph against the Minas Gerais team. 

“We managed to find an interesting setup so that we could compete at a high level. The game plan was similar to the one in Minas, but this time we took advantage of the opportunities at the beginning of the game and that ended up changing the scenario. It gave us more space, it gave us more peace of mind to play our best game and that's how we achieved the victory,” commented the Flamengo coach.

Leal also spoke about the young midfielder Reinier, who, despite being part of the Under-20 team, moved down to the Under-17 category and in his first match in the Copa do Brasil was one of the team's standouts, scoring the goal that sealed Flamengo's victory.

“Reinier is another great player we have at our disposal. He will need to relearn some behaviors, which is natural for someone who isn't used to the routine of this level of play. I think his talent can grow and help us throughout the competition.”

Our quarter-final opponent, São Paulo, qualified by beating Atlético-MG in both matches (first leg 2-0 and second leg 5-1). Flamengo will face two great duels against the São Paulo team and the Flamengo coach is already planning for the match, which is scheduled for next Wednesday (31), at 16:15 pm, at Morumbi. Flamengo will decide the spot at home on 8/11, at 15 pm, at a location to be defined.

“São Paulo is among the five best teams in the country, we know that. The expectation is that it will be a great game, another game with high demands. It's time to recover, to start studying the opponent so that we can go there and play a good game and in the return leg be able to decide at home with favorable conditions,” Leal emphasized.