U-20 draws with Olaria and continues to fight for qualification in the OPG Tournament
The Ninho boys come out from behind and put on a lot of pressure, but leave Gávea with only a 1-1 draw on the scoreboard.
By Ian Sena - inFlamengo's Under-20 team had a difficult match this Saturday morning (03), in Gávea. A victory against Olaria, in a duel valid for the fourth round of the second phase of the Otávio Pinto Guimarães Tournament (OPG), was of fundamental importance for the Garotos do Ninho to overtake their opponent and take the sole lead in Group E, which at the end of the sixth round will only qualify the leader directly for the final of the competition. However, under intense heat, the Mais Querido fell behind and ran hard in an attempt to turn the game around, but only managed a draw, with a beautiful goal by Yuri at the end of the match. With this, still one point behind Olaria, Flamengo will need to beat Madureira and América, and hope for a stumble by the team from the Rio suburbs in the last two rounds.
The heat was intense and stifling in Gávea. Perhaps that's why the first 15 minutes of the game were lukewarm, without any scoring opportunities. Only in the 17th minute did Flamengo create a chance, and they almost scored. Luiz Henrique received the ball wide on the right wing and crossed low. The ball went across the area and passed inches from Vitor Gabriel, who couldn't reach it. In the next play, Klebinho cut inside and found a beautiful pass for Vitor Gabriel. The OPG striker had his shirt pulled by the defender, but he didn't give up and, with some difficulty, managed to get a shot off. But the ball went just wide of the right post of goalkeeper Marcão.
Olaria had their first shot on goal in the 23rd minute, a long-range effort from Alexandre. Victor Hugo made a flying save, parrying it for a corner. The home team almost opened the scoring in the 36th minute. Bill switched the play to Klebinho, who crossed dangerously into the area. Marcão cleared, but the ball fell to Bill, who shot low. The Olaria goalkeeper made an impressive recovery, diving to prevent the goal practically on the goal line. The last chance before halftime belonged to Olaria. Amorim headed the ball, and Victor Hugo made a great save.
The Flamengo youth team knew that a victory today would be crucial, and they went in search of a goal in the second half. Just five minutes in, Klebinho crossed the ball and Vitor Gabriel rose unmarked inside the area, but his header went wide. But things didn't go quite as planned. At eight minutes, Olaria responded. Luiz received the ball at the edge of the area and shot past Victor Hugo, but the ball went wide, startling the Flamengo goalkeeper. The suburban team opened the scoring at 20 minutes with a penalty converted by Alexandre.
Flamengo went on the attack. At 21 minutes, Lucas Silva took a cross shot, and the defense cleared a ball that was heading towards the goal. In the following minute, Yuri tried his luck from outside the area, and the ball went to the left of Marcão. At 29 minutes, Flamengo had a dangerous free kick in their favor. Klebinho, who scored the winning goal from a free kick in the match against América, took it again with skill and was unlucky: the ball hit the post, and Marcão didn't even move.
The pressure was intense, and the equalizer finally came in the 39th minute. Yuri received the ball in midfield and struck a beautiful, well-placed shot, giving Marcão no chance to save. But the Flamengo youth team wanted more. The final minutes were filled with intense effort and running in search of a comeback, which didn't materialize. Flamengo will need to beat Madureira and América to keep their hopes alive of reaching the OPG Tournament final.
Flamengo: Victor Hugo, Klebinho, Nathan, Patrick, Pablo; Henrique (Marx Lenin), Matheus Alves, Luiz Henrique; Bill (Lucas Silva), Wendel (Vitor Ricardo) and Vitor Gabriel (Yuri). Coach: Marcio Torres.