Vagner Love missed three chances. Adriano two more. And Flamengo was eliminated from the Taça Guanabara on Wednesday night at Maracanã. Marcelo Cordeiro and Caio capitalized on their opportunities, giving Botafogo a 2-1 comeback victory over the Rubro-Negro, which earned the General Severiano team a spot in the Campeonato Carioca first-round final against Vasco. Despite this, the Rubro-Negro fans saw a silver lining.

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According to Ronaldo Angelim, Flamengo performed very well against their rivals in this semifinal match. For the Gávea team's number 4, the team dominated the match from the opening whistle and even deserved a better result. However, as often happens in soccer, the better team on the field ended up defeated.

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"Botafogo ended up taking advantage of the chances they had. Their players ended up clearing both balls inside the box, and that hurt us. Flamengo dominated the game, but the better player doesn't always win, and that was proven today," said Angelim.

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For birthday boy Adriano, who failed to score, Flamengo was indeed superior to their opponent on Wednesday. However, they ended up being outclassed by the black-and-whites' better use of scoring opportunities. Therefore, the number 10 believes it's not time to give up.

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"Flamengo played better, but this time it wasn't enough. We just can't let our heads drop," he concluded.