It was exactly as Mauricio Barbieri envisioned. According to the coach, a packed Maracanã would be a crucial weapon for Flamengo to secure qualification. And that's exactly what happened: 55 fans cheered the "Mais Querido" (Flamengo's Favorite) to a 1-0 victory over Grêmio on Wednesday night, a result that put Mengão in the Copa do Brasil semifinals. After the match, the Flamengo coach held a press conference and highlighted the team's commitment in a tough final match.

"We scored early, but it's hard to talk about peace of mind, as we knew we had an opponent who could cause us problems. We didn't give Grêmio any space, but we were sitting back too much. The idea was to be more aggressive and not make them comfortable. I gestured a lot because the fans were having a wonderful time, and I had to shout a lot to talk to them. The fans had a wonderful time today; there were almost 60 fans. We have to be careful with our assessments of the moment. Rodinei had a great game, marking Everton very well, who had been playing well. Rodinei had a great game, as did everyone else, with great commitment and a lot of fighting. We left quite exhausted, which proves that everyone gave their all."

"It was a great game, very confident. We were able to withstand the pressure that Grêmio imposed. They're a great team, the champions of the Americas, with a great coach. We played well in the south, and today we didn't dominate, but we knew how to play the final. We had the best chances to kill the game. We're very happy to be in the semifinals," concluded the coach.

Vitinho, who started tonight's match, was replaced by Marlos Moreno in the second half. The red-and-black coach commented on the substitution.

"Regarding Vitinho and Marlos, they both play on the left wing, and during the second half, we switched Vitinho's positioning. I put him inside, and Diego moved to the left. They have different and similar characteristics; they're great one-on-one players, while Vitinho has a better shot from outside. They both contribute a lot. We have to be wise when making our choices. We faced the best defense in Brazil. You can't have many chances to score against a defense as good as Grêmio's. Given the game, we did what was necessary to win."

When asked if Flamengo is the favorite in the semifinal against Corinthians, Barbieri dodged the question and preferred to focus on this weekend's game.

"We're talking about two great teams. Regardless of the moment, the games will be evenly matched. On the other side, there's an opponent who's also preparing, but our focus now is on the next game against Atlético-PR."

The Most Beloved returns to the field this Sunday (19), when they visit Atlético-PR at Arena da Baixada, at 11 am, for the 19th round of the Brazilian Championship.