Luxa explains changes to Flamengo's team
Coach opted to keep the fifth-string defense and field Val and Diego in attack against Avaí
By From the team at Flamengo's official website - in
Shortly after Saturday's tactical training session (October 09.10) in Santa Catarina, Flamengo coach Vanderlei Luxemburgo gave a press conference and explained the changes made to the red-and-black team for Sunday's match (October 10.10) against Avaí. The surprises came from the defense, which retained Welinton and David, despite having Jean and Angelim available, while Val Baiano and Diego Maurício will form the attack in place of the injured Diogo and Deivid. In the middle, Renato returns to the starting lineup, replacing Petkovic.
"Renato's return was natural. Pet played 90 minutes; he's an older player, so we have to preserve him so he can perform in the future. In defense, I opted to keep the duo from Thursday's game because they did very well stopping Atlético-GO's counterattacks, which I believe are very similar to Avaí's. Up front, I put Diego, who is fast and played very well, with Val, to be the reference point. I know Deivid, but he's still adapting to Brazil and needs a little more time to play his best football," he analyzed.
While much talk is going around about Leonardo Moura's 300th match for Flamengo, it's also worth remembering that this will be the 100th match the Red-Blacks will play under Luxemburgo, despite only the second in his third stint at the club. The statistic will go down in history, but what he really wants is to win the match.
"It's a good number, I didn't even know that, but what matters is that we get the wins. In my career, I've had a very positive record, and that's what I want here at Flamengo. The team is evolving naturally. I've been doing tactical training to get to know the team a little better, and I believe we'll achieve positive results. Winning all ten games, right to the end, is difficult, but we'll try. What the fans can be sure of is that there will never be a lack of desire," said Luxa, who also emphasized the importance of having players who identify with Flamengo on the roster.
"Welinton is from the youth academy, Diego and Lomba too, and that's important. Flamengo has always produced stars at home and I want to revive that culture too," he added.
Overall, Luxemburgo has 52 wins, 24 draws and 23 losses in 99 times he has managed Flamengo.
"Renato's return was natural. Pet played 90 minutes; he's an older player, so we have to preserve him so he can perform in the future. In defense, I opted to keep the duo from Thursday's game because they did very well stopping Atlético-GO's counterattacks, which I believe are very similar to Avaí's. Up front, I put Diego, who is fast and played very well, with Val, to be the reference point. I know Deivid, but he's still adapting to Brazil and needs a little more time to play his best football," he analyzed.
While much talk is going around about Leonardo Moura's 300th match for Flamengo, it's also worth remembering that this will be the 100th match the Red-Blacks will play under Luxemburgo, despite only the second in his third stint at the club. The statistic will go down in history, but what he really wants is to win the match.
"It's a good number, I didn't even know that, but what matters is that we get the wins. In my career, I've had a very positive record, and that's what I want here at Flamengo. The team is evolving naturally. I've been doing tactical training to get to know the team a little better, and I believe we'll achieve positive results. Winning all ten games, right to the end, is difficult, but we'll try. What the fans can be sure of is that there will never be a lack of desire," said Luxa, who also emphasized the importance of having players who identify with Flamengo on the roster.
"Welinton is from the youth academy, Diego and Lomba too, and that's important. Flamengo has always produced stars at home and I want to revive that culture too," he added.
Overall, Luxemburgo has 52 wins, 24 draws and 23 losses in 99 times he has managed Flamengo.
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