Scorer of the goal, Everton Ribeiro celebrates qualification, but already thinks about the Brasileirão
The midfielder is already focused on the next game, on Sunday, and on the rest of Mengão's season.
By Lucas Dantas - in
Best on the field, scorer of the qualifying goal, battled all the way, the name of the night at Maracanã. Everton Ribeiro emerged as the hero of the 1-0 victory over Grêmio, which qualified Flamengo for the Copa do Brasil semifinals. In the fourth minute, the midfielder collected a rebound from Paquetá and fired home the only goal of the game. Incidentally, with his right foot, which isn't his "good" one.
"It's been a while since I scored with my right foot. I've done it before, but when it comes out like that it's special," said the number seven who only had one shot: the one that led to the goal. In addition to the shot, Everton made 29 successful passes, only six missed, and was fouled five times.
The goal was important, but it's in the past. According to the player, the team needs to focus on the next game and maintain its form to advance in the competitions it competes in. Flamengo is second in the Brazilian Championship, one point behind São Paulo, and is vying for a spot in the quarterfinals of the CONMEBOL Libertadores against Cruzeiro. The second game will be in Minas Gerais on August 29th, and Flamengo needs to overturn a two-goal deficit.
"We're still in the running in all three competitions. We know it's tough, but we're taking it game by game, thinking about each match. It's very important to do so. We learned from our mistakes and learned the lesson from the Libertadores. The knockout stage is different. We played a great match against a team that's very difficult to beat, so congratulations to everyone. Now it's time to keep our feet on the ground and face the next round," explained Everton Ribeiro after the game, still holding the Man of the Match trophy.The next match will be against Corinthians. The games will take place in September, on the 12th and 26th, with home and away matches yet to be determined. In the competition's history, the teams met in the quarterfinals in 1989, and Flamengo advanced after winning in Rio (2-0) and losing in São Paulo (4-2), based on the qualifying goal rule. For 2018, this rule no longer applies. Everton Ribeiro is aware of the difficulty of the match, but emphasizes that the Brazilian Championship is still ahead.
"It will be difficult once again. Corinthians is a team that rarely concedes a goal, but when the time comes, we'll think about them. There's still the Brasileirão and we'll take it game by game. We'll see who's best to play. We have a strong group to continue well in the competition," concluded the star of the match.
Flamengo travels to face Atlético-PR next Sunday, at 11 am, at Arena da Baixada for the 19th round of the competition.