Barbieri praises his team's high-level play
Coach gave a press conference after the victory over Vitória
By Flamengo Communication - inFlamengo returned to winning ways in the Brazilian Championship. Diego's 1-0 victory over Vitória this Thursday at Maracanã keeps the "Mais Querido" in contention for the title. Despite the narrow scoreline, coach Mauricio Barbieri praised his team's dominance and emphasized that the team deserved tonight's triumph.
"I spoke on the sidelines about how happy I was to meet Capergiani again. He's a great coach with a history at the club as both a coach and a player. Regarding the game, it was a very important victory. We knew it would be difficult, and we faced a different Vitória. We played a very good, high-level game. Vitória came out defensive, and we were able to move the ball around, creating many scoring chances. Furthermore, we controlled the second half, creating several chances to extend the lead. It's important to emphasize that victories aren't about obligation, but about merit. We deserved to win today."
"The three points are worth the same. We have to be calm in defeat as in victory. Even in the defeat against Atlético-PR, we had positive and negative points that need to be adjusted. Today, we also had negative and positive points, which will be adjusted according to the games. It was a great game, a good victory that keeps us in the fight for the title," concluded the red-and-black coach.
For a long time, the press questioned the pairing of Diego and Everton Ribeiro together. In today's match, the two were once again crucial, with the number 10 scoring the winning goal and Ribeiro very involved, whether on the right wing or in the middle. For the coach, the midfielders bring the perfect balance to his team.
"We put them both together and found the perfect balance. We don't just play with them, we also play with Paquetá. I think we're one of the few teams that plays with a single defensive player in the middle. Everyone tries to occupy space and create opportunities. There's no one reason, but rather several factors that make the team competitive."
The Most Beloved returns to the field to face América-MG, this Sunday (29), at 16 pm, at Independência, for the 21st round of the Brazilian Championship.
Watch Mauricio Barbieri's full press conference: