They say that when things are bad, nothing goes right. On the other hand, when things are good... Diego Maurício, a striker for Flamengo's youth team, is proof of this. Playing for a team whose main strength is precisely its collective effort, he has been excelling individually with excellent finishing. This Sunday morning, the number 10 led the red-and-blacks to another victory in the U-20 Carioca Championship. This time, the victim was Boavista: 3-2, with two goals from the top scorer.

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Flamengo started the match at full steam. Even playing at Caio Martins Stadium in intense heat, coach Armênio Moura's youngsters were undaunted and went all out against Boavista. After insisting so much, the team from Gávea managed to open the scoring through right-back Alex, who has been replacing Rafael Galhardo with great skill. Shortly after, Diego Maurício scored his first goal, and the second for the red-and-black team.

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Just when everything seemed calm, however, Boavista responded. Still in the first half, after a back-and-forth in the middle of the box, the team from Saquarema reduced the deficit, and right at the start of the second half, less than a minute into the game, they tied the score. Then, Flamengo woke up and launched an attack in search of a third goal. With more possession and creating good chances, the red-and-blacks took a while, but ultimately secured the victory.

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And once again, the hero of the match was Diego Maurício. The number 10 scored his second goal of the game midway through the second half, putting Flamengo back in front and securing another victory for the Gávea team: 3-2. The result leaves Flamengo in first place in the Taça Guanabara, with 19 points (six wins and one draw). Diego remains the competition's top scorer, with 10 goals in seven games.

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"It was an important result because Botafogo (second place, with 17 points) also won, and if we had drawn, we would have lost the two-point advantage we have over them. The team conceded a goal very quickly in the second half, but they knew how to play their game, controlled it well, and Diego was lucky to score the winning goal," explained defender Christianno.

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After this round, the kids have 20 days off until their next game. The match will be against Macaé, at a time yet to be determined, on the weekend of the 27th and 28th.