Flamengo's U-16 team continues to enchant the world and crush all its opponents on foreign soil. After winning the Dubai International Championship for the second time undefeated, the "Garotos do Ninho" (Ninho Boys), led by coach Mario Jorge, arrived in Italy at the end of last week for the Verona Soccer Cup, a traditional tournament held in Europe for decades. 

The debut was this Sunday, with a 4-0 rout of Vicenza. This Monday (29), Mais Querido returned to the field for two more games, in a double round that concluded the Rubro-Negro's participation in the group stage of the European competition. In the morning, the Garotos do Ninho faced Hellas Verona, a local team. The match was tough, intense, but a victory for the Rubro-Negro. Just six minutes in, Oliveira received the ball open, got away from his marker and unleashed a bomb into the right corner of the goalkeeper, who could do nothing. 

Flamengo, the better team on the field, missed good opportunities before halftime but only managed to extend their lead in the second half, with a beautiful counterattack organized by the attacking system. After the ball passed through João Pedro and Oliveira, Ryan Luka fired a low shot. The goalkeeper rebounded, and Victor Hugo was well-positioned to score the second, giving the Mais Querido more confidence in the match. In the 17th minute, the Italian team reduced the deficit with a header, but the Garotos do Ninho defended well and took the three points, securing their place in the semifinals.

But Mengão also wanted to top the group, and to do so, they would have to beat the mighty Milan in the final round. No problem for Flamengo's U-16 team. The excellent victory began in the 27th minute of the first half. After a beautiful exchange of passes in the attacking sector, Arthur exchanged passes with Ryan Luka and crossed to the far post for João Pedro, who tapped it past the goalkeeper to open the scoring. Early in the second half, Flamengo extended their lead. Oliveira sent a low cross into the box, and João Pedro won the battle against the defense to score his second goal of the match. 

In the eleventh minute, the "Garotos do Ninho" (Nest Boys) pressured the opponent's ball out and killed the game against the European giant. By pushing the Milan goal kick forward, the Rubro-Negro forced a mistake from the defense, who sent the ball back to the goalkeeper. The attempted long ball rebounded off Ryan Luka and into the back of the net. The game ended, and Verona, Flamengo 3-0 over Milan, and first place in Group A was secured.

The red-and-black opponent in the semifinal will be Red Bull Salzburg of Austria. The duel for a spot in the grand final takes place this Tuesday (30) at 14 pm Brasília time. The winner will face the winner of the match between Milan and Slavia Prague of the Czech Republic on Wednesday.