Dorival Júnior: Let's always believe
Coach preached the speech of fighting for the title until the last opportunity
By Mariana Sa - inWe'll keep fighting until the end. This Wednesday (21), Flamengo beat Grêmio 2-0, with goals from Uribe and Diego, and remained in the fight for the Brazilian Championship title. Despite the difficulty, the Mais Querido, according to Dorival Júnior's press conference after the final whistle, will always continue to believe.
"We have to be both realistic and optimistic. This is the mindset we'll take into the final rounds. We'll always believe, understand the competition, and do our best in these final matches, counting on our fans and showing them they still believe. We're happy with our direct spot in the Libertadores, but we're not satisfied. We're preparing for more. We're playing for this, playing high-level football, always delivering a message that makes the nation believe with us," analyzed the red-and-black coach.
Against Grêmio, Dorival Júnior reached the ten-game mark in charge of the Mais Querido. "I have great respect for the work left by Maurício Barbieri. The team was very well assembled, and the work was well done. Flamengo has maintained a team structure for a long time, and that's important; it's a step you take to get closer to great achievements. We're just trying to add important details, attacking more, infiltrating more, based on what we saw from Flamengo. We had a nearly perfect first half today, creating triangles on the wings. This may have been the biggest gain in almost 50 days in charge. The team has been playing well, compact. We're not conceding many goals. This shows hard work, dedication, and the squad's acceptance of what was proposed. The players believe this concept can be improved. We're making some changes, and the attitude hasn't changed; the group shows that they always come in wanting more. Flamengo is fighting and searching with all the intensity and willpower possible," he said.
Jean Lucas and Orlando Berrío came on in the second half and actively contributed to Diego's second goal. When asked about this, Dorival praised them. "We needed more strength in midfield. Diego was more solid and played an excellent match, returning to being the great player we know and have seen before. Their introduction strengthened the team, with Jean marking very well and Berrío exploiting counterattacks. We needed that. Fortunately, it gave us the goal and calmed the game. The formation of this squad was very well thought out and studied," said the coach.
Next Sunday (25), Flamengo will travel to Mineirão to face Cruzeiro, at 17 pm. “It's a very well-assembled team, champions of the Copa do Brasil not by chance. We have to be careful and keep believing. We rely heavily on the strength of our fans. We will fight for every ball, every space, every moment of creation, every goal. We want this, the Nation believing that we can get there just as we believe here”, concluded Dorival.
Check out the full press conference on FlaTV: