Another Flamengo youth academy product to gain a foothold under Rogério Lourenço in the second half of 2010, defender Welinton is all smiles after the Rubro-Negro's first two post-World Cup matches. After all, he started in both, and the team didn't concede a goal in either. An unprecedented feat this year so far.

The player is thrilled and believes the timing is perfect for a run in the Brasileirão. After all, even though the competition is just getting started, points are just as important as those earned in the final stretch.

"It's a great time to gain confidence in the competition. During the World Cup break, we worked hard on the mistakes we were making. This opportunity has come up, and I'm training hard to get better and better," said the defender, who says he's motivated to seize every opportunity.

"Many people would like to be in our shoes, and we're in that situation. We can't afford to give up. We have to grab our chances with all our might. You get in, you take advantage, but, of course, if David comes back well, he'll take my place. I just have to keep working harder and harder. I'll keep training and waiting for Professor Rogério's decisions," he noted.

Despite being satisfied and confident in a future of great results, Welinton remains grounded. The defender believes the team needs to be mature and cannot assume that victories against Botafogo and Atlético-GO are enough.

"You can't let yourself get carried away by whatever happens. It takes maturity and awareness to know that everything is still in its infancy. Just as we started well, if everything goes wrong against Avaí, we'll start all over again. They'll say we're immature. But if we've gotten this far, it wasn't by chance. We have to take responsibility and face the problem head-on," he concluded.

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