Flamengo's U-16 team, led by coach Ramon Lima, is very close to winning the Guilherme Embry Tournament, the state championship for the category, for the second time. After a great 2-0 victory (Marcos Felipe and João Pedro) over Botafogo, achieved on Tuesday morning (27), in Gávea, the Garotos do Ninho reached seven points in the final triangular of the competition, and can be crowned champions next Friday, even without playing. To do so, Fluminense simply needs to avoid beating the already eliminated Botafogo. If Fluminense wins, the Mais Querido will go into the final match of the tournament needing only a draw at FlaxFlu scheduled for next Monday, the 3rd, in Xerém.

The Boys of the Nest knew that winning today would mean putting one foot in the door of the title and their second Guilherme Embry Tournament title, and they didn't take long to open the scoring. In the first minute of play, Marcos Felipe believed in the play when the ball was passed back by the defense to goalkeeper João, made a precise tackle, and stole the ball to tap it into the back of the net. A minute later, it was Pedro Arthur's turn to pressure Botafogo's ball out, steal the ball, and find himself one-on-one with the goalkeeper. However, his shot was wide, and the ball went wide of João's right post. Botafogo threatened in the fifth minute. Bruno parried the first shot, and Marquinhos appeared free on the rebound to shoot from the outside of the net.

After this lively start, the game became more tense, with plenty of fighting and some rough plays, and few scoring chances. It wasn't until the 31st minute that Botafogo came back into the game, threatening Raí with a shot from the edge of the box that went over Bruno's goal. In the final play before halftime, Jean Carlos evaded his marker at speed, burst into the box, dribbled past the defender, and struck hard. The ball was in João's hands, but he missed again and was fortunate to see the ball fly inches wide of the post and go out for a corner.

Just like in the first half, Flamengo pushed forward and nearly extended their lead in the opening seconds of the second half. Weverton passed the ball to João Pedro, who, with his first touch, cut through the defense and fired a shot that was brilliantly saved by João. The defense cleared the rebound, and the Botafogo Boys had an excellent opportunity to score their second goal in the 13th minute. Dhouglas delivered a beautiful pass to Weverton. Facing goal, the Flamengo center forward controlled the ball and tried to lay it off João, who came out well and made another important save for Botafogo.

The Mais Querido pressed forward and tried to kill the game. In the 16th minute, João Pedro struck a powerful shot from the edge of the box. The ball deflected off the defense, but João, well-positioned, made the save in two attempts. In the 18th minute, Raí unleashed a beautiful shot from outside the box. It was goalkeeper Bruno's turn to fly and make a great save, maintaining the red-and-black advantage. In the 33rd minute, the referee awarded a penalty to Botafogo. Marquinhos took the shot, and once again this season, as he had done in Dubai in the final against Real Madrid, Bruno stepped up and made the save, which may have been the title defense. 

In the final minute of the game, in a swift counterattack, João Pedro outpaced the entire Botafogo defense and goalkeeper, crossing the entire field with the ball, and only missed the goal thanks to his humility. Two-nil on the scoreboard, the Boys from the Nest are one foot away from their second title.

Coach: Ramon Lima.