The day after coach Zé Ricardo was dismissed from the club, Rodrigo Caetano, the club's football director, appeared at the Victorino Chermont Press Room, at Ninho do Urubu, to give a press conference. During the conversation with journalists, the director commented on the decision taken last Sunday (06), after the defeat against Vitória at Ilha do Urubu.

"Until yesterday, we expected the performance to bring results again. Of the last nine points, we only managed one, which distanced us from the leaders Corinthians and Grêmio. I think the unfavorable environment for continuity weighed heavily," explained Caetano. "Something we were always convinced of is that if we were to make a simplistic decision, perhaps after the elimination from the Libertadores, his dismissal would have come, as many predicted. We always believed in the work until, regrettably, we reached yesterday and what happened, especially with the need to make a change that will bring us performance and results from now on," he commented, emphasizing that confidence in the work is the philosophy adopted for choices in football. 

"We feel entitled to speak about this matter because Zé Ricardo was, until yesterday, the coach with the longest tenure. We cannot evaluate the current Flamengo as one of the clubs that engages in this crazy turnover of coaches. Therefore, we need to exercise immense caution with this 'inquiry that becomes an offer' until all stages of the negotiation have been completed," he concluded.

The name of Zé Ricardo's replacement is still being considered by the board, with different profiles being analyzed during the process. "We are evaluating distinct profiles among the options. Someone who has applied the training methodology, who can continue everything that Zé was presenting; who has good leadership skills, regardless of whether they are young or not; on-field qualification, with good leadership skills, because we recognize that the squad we have assembled needs good management. That wasn't what caused this downward trend at Flamengo, but we hope that this future coach will arrive with these attributes and be able to restore performance and results," he said.

For Wednesday's (09) match against Palestino-CHI, for the Copa Sudamericana, Caetano confirmed who will lead the team on an interim basis. "Jayme, who is our permanent assistant coach and who already trained the team today. On Wednesday, he will be the one to select the team. We have an important week, because we will not only have this game, which qualifies us for the round of 16 of the Copa Sudamericana, and the Brazilian Championship game, but there is also the Copa do Brasil. In other words, we will play three competitions in one week. It is really a task in which Jayme will make his choices. They have already met, also led by Mozer and other members of the technical staff, to make this assessment," explained the manager.

Check out Rodrigo Caetano's press conference in full:

On the field, Mais Querido began preparations for the return match against Palestino, from Chile, which will be played this Wednesday (09). Interim coach of the red-black team, Jayme de Almeida led technical and tactical work with the athletes who did not play in Flamengo's last match in the Brazilian Championship.

Initially, the activities focused on passing accuracy and movement, with only two touches allowed per player on the team in possession of the ball. Following this, there was a small-sided game, which concluded the day's work at the training center. Both training sessions included the participation of midfielder Jean Lucas and left-back Moraes, Flamengo youth academy players who are part of the under-20 team.

Both at Flamengo's Center of Excellence in Performance (CEP FLA) and on the pitch of Field 4 at Ninho do Urubu, the players who started the match against Vitória took part in regenerative training, led by physical trainer Daniel Gonçalves.

The match against the Chilean team will be played at Ilha do Urubu, with kickoff at 21:45 PM.