Petkovic last played for Flamengo on April 21st, in a 3-2 victory over Caracas in the final round of the Copa Santander Libertadores group stage. Next Sunday, the Serbian could have another opportunity to not only play but also start for Flamengo, something he's only had six times this year.

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Excited about the possibility of starting, Petkovic recognizes the strength of the red-black group and says he is calm in this fight for the starting spot.

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"Flamengo has a lot of quality players, and you don't know who's a starter and who's a reserve. It's all about who's better at the moment. Sometimes you get players who aren't called up for games and they play a team match against the juniors, who have even been starters for a long time. That's normal," he said.

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This Sunday's match pits the two most successful Brazilian Championship winners, each with six titles, against each other. That's why Petkovic predicts a great match at the Maracanã.

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"It's a very important game. Starting the Brazilian Championship with a match between Flamengo and São Paulo is important. They are the two best teams from last year, and the two biggest winners of the competition, in addition to competing in the Libertadores, which is a completely different competition," he said.

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In 2009, on the road to their sixth title, Flamengo and São Paulo played a stellar game at the Maracanã. Hernanes opened the scoring for the São Paulo team, but with a fine performance from Pet, who scored from the penalty spot, Flamengo came from behind to secure three important points.

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"It's going to be a great game, for sure, and I hope we can repeat what we did last year and come away with the victory. Regardless of who takes the field, the team has the confidence of everyone, the coaching staff and our teammates," he noted.

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Ankle Injury - Despite being happy, Petkovic still doesn't know if he'll be able to play against São Paulo due to a right ankle injury. A sprain suffered in training this Friday could rule the Serbian out of the game.

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"It's quite sore. I hope it gets better tomorrow Saturday, otherwise what am I going to do?" he joked.

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Flamengo's likely lineup for this Sunday's debut against São Paulo is: Bruno, Everton Silva, David, Ronaldo Angelim and Juan; Romulo, Toró, Kleberson, Fierro and Petkovic (Vinícius Pacheco or Michael); Adriano.