The four international titles won so far this season (Nike Premier Cup U-15, Dubai U-16 Tournament, Dallas Cup U-17, and Dossena Trophy U-19) seem not to be enough for the "Garos do Ninho" and Flamengo's youth team, in a year that also saw them win the Copa São Paulo and the Campeonato Carioca, both in the U-20 category. The focus this time is The Next Generation Trophy 2018, considered the World Championship for the U-15 category. And competing for the title against several national champions from around the world, the "Mais Querido" is doing well once again.

The tournament, which is being played at Red Bull Akademie, the Red Bull Salzburg Training Center in Austria, kicked off on Thursday morning (16), with a double round for all teams. In Group D of the competition, Flamengo debuted at 8:05 a.m. (Brasília time) against Red Bull Leipzig, from Germany. With a great collective performance, the Rubro-Negro opened the scoring in the 12th minute of play, with a shot from inside the box by Werton after a throw-in. Seven minutes into the second half, center forward Ryan doubled the lead. Captain Diego, with a penalty kick, put the finishing touches to the Mais Querido's victorious debut with a goal in the 17th minute. In the competition, games are shortened, divided into two halves lasting 25 minutes each.

Without much time to rest, the "Garotos do Ninho" returned to the field immediately for the second round. Their opponent was Viitorul Constanta of Romania, and the result was the same: a 3-1 victory for Flamengo. João Pedro opened the scoring in the 23rd minute of the first half with a beautiful free kick. Just two minutes into the second half, Ryan doubled the lead with a shot from the edge of the box after a pass from Kaiky. The Romanian team pulled one back in the 19th minute, but nothing to faze the "Mais Querido" (The Most Beloved), who still had time to score the third in the 23rd minute, again with João Pedro, heading in a well-placed cross from Leo.

With these two victories, the Garotos do Ninho qualified for the quarterfinals in first place in the group. Their opponent, in a match scheduled for this Friday morning (16) at 6 am (Brasília time), will be Bayern Munich, from Germany, who qualified in second place in Group C. Benfica, from Portugal, was the first placed. If they qualify, Flamengo will return to the field this Friday to play the World Cup semifinal against the winner of Chelsea (England) and Red Bull Brasil and keep alive the dream of the fifth international title of the 2018 season for the red-black youth football.