Recent criticism of the Flamengo defense's form hasn't been gaining traction within the group. All the players are determined to give a little more to avoid conceding more goals in the coming rounds. And Petkovic is no different. The player is banking on the strength of the squad to see Flamengo continue to improve in 2010.

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"Our defense is very good. It was the one that decided the Brazilian Championship last year. We are a group. It's neither the defense nor the attack that fails or wins a game. It's a team. We are striving for perfection and the best for Flamengo," he stated.

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Coach Andrade, for his part, assures that the criticism doesn't bother him, and comes at an opportune time, when the team, despite possible mistakes, is winning. According to the coach, the absences in the first few rounds have resulted in the team not yet achieving the ideal chemistry, which will come as the season progresses.

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"The only team that didn't start with a full complement was ours. In the first two games, we were shorthanded, with a mixed team. And yet we won all four games. This conversation is good because we're winning. There's no point just talking about the defeat," he explained.

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The last time they met, Flamengo and Fluminense played a thrilling derby, but Flamengo completely dominated, prevailing with two goals from Adriano, as they raced toward their sixth Brazilian championship title. At the time, Fluminense was fighting relegation. But for Pet, this history is meaningless.

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"These are different moments, different physical stages, different competitions... Fluminense has an excellent team and if last year they suffered from the threat of relegation it wasn't because of the quality of the players," he concluded.