Visibly moved at a Charity Dinner held Monday night in São Conrado by the Bola Pra Frente Institute, which he co-leads alongside Jorginho, former player and World Cup winner with the Brazilian National Team, Bebeto, couldn't contain his enthusiasm when discussing another topic: Flamengo. Excited about the team's run in the Brasileirão (they haven't lost in ten matches in the competition), the former striker, a national champion with the club in 1987, praised coach Andrade and expressed confidence in the sixth title.

This Wednesday, Flamengo faces Barueri away from home, and depending on a combination of results, could jump from fifth to first place in the table. While difficult, the task is quite possible, and Bebeto believes everything can work out and Flamengo can sleep in the lead.

"It's a great joy for me to see Flamengo in such good form. We have to take it one game at a time, calmly, but who knows, maybe we'll be in first place starting Wednesday? Anything can happen. But the most important thing is to take it step by step, earn victories, and in the end, see what happens. They let us get there, now it's going to be hard to hold off Flamengo," said an enthusiastic Bebeto, who hopes to see a packed Maracanã for the match against Santos. "If we win on Wednesday, the fans will invade the Maracanã on Saturday. I've been sleeping thinking about that, about that title. The team is looking good. We haven't won anything yet, but we have everything we need to achieve our ultimate goal, which is to be Brazilian champion," he added.

The Bahia native, who now sees his son Matheus excel in the youth category, fondly recalls his playing days and heaps praise on his former teammate Andrade. According to him, "Tromba" was not only a great athlete, but also a great person and a great coach, leading Flamengo to great glory.

"He's a wonderful person and one of the best players in his position I've ever seen. I'm very happy for him. Andrade knows how to handle a player, he doesn't make things up... It's what Zagallo always told me: 'Just make it work.' And that's what Andrade does, and he does it very well. Flamengo's board was very happy to sign him. The solution was right in front of us," he said.

Bebeto's praise wasn't just in the past. The former striker made a point of highlighting the quality of Flamengo's current squad, especially two players: Petkovic and Adriano, the Brazilian Championship's top scorer with 16 goals. And Zé Roberto, who also attended the event and has been enjoying a great run of form with the Gávea club.

"Zé Roberto, who people kept saying was going to the night and that he didn't have faith, for me is one of Flamengo's best, alongside Adriano and Petkovic. I've always believed in Pet. I talked to Andrade and told him that Pet would still help us a lot. Pet is a unique player. Nowadays, it's hard to find someone at his level, with quality in passing, finishing, free kicks, corner kicks, in short, with so many technical resources. It's a close-knit group. Andrade was a player himself and knows how to reach the group. The players give themselves for the coach," he concluded.