Thiago Barros

Sports Journal

Rio de Janeiro - The 2009 Rio futsal season is about to begin. With nine teams divided into two groups, the Metropolitan Futsal Championship will kick off tonight amidst high expectations, proving that the financial crisis may have been a threat, but it hasn't killed the sport in Rio. Current state champion Flamengo is the best example of this. The Red-Blacks overcame the difficulties and will play the opening match of the championship at 20 p.m. against Grajaú. From last year's state champions, coach Cid Escarlate will only have eight players available, none of whom were starters. Furthermore, the team no longer trains at the Hélio Maurício Gymnasium in Gávea, but at Bradesco Esporte Clube in Tijuca, three times a week. Even so, the players, directors, coaching staff, and fans promise to unite to lead Flamengo to another victorious season on the court. "Unfortunately, this crisis has somewhat disrupted all the clubs' plans. But I believe we'll have a good Metropolitano, with teams at a not-so-high but well-balanced level, and I'm sure that, as always, Flamengo will fight for this title," says winger Saulo, top scorer in the last Metropolitano for América and one of the remaining players from last year's squad for Flamengo. Because they confirmed their participation in the Metropolitano some time after the rest of the teams, Flamengo had less time to train and fine-tune technical and tactical details for the upcoming match. To overcome this challenge, the Red-Black team is banking on the team's chemistry and strength. "A good portion of the champions stayed. Of course, some key players ended up leaving the team, but we have a great friendship and chemistry, even with the new players who arrived, so I'm sure this will help us a lot on the court. Unfortunately, we won't be able to play as much as we did at the end of last year's State Championship, but we're gradually improving to reach that level," adds center Gabriel, the best player of the 2007 Rio futsal season. Grajaú Tênis Clube is a venue that brings back many positive memories for the Flamengo team. After all, it was there that the team played its decisive matches in the Metropolitano and State Championships last season.