In 2009, the nation ended a 17-year wait when, after Petkovic's corner kick, Angelim headed in the winning goal for the Brazilian Championship. All of Brazil stood still to watch the red-and-black epic being written in a Maracanã stadium overflowing with tears, love, and hope. Flamengo lifted the national championship trophy for the sixth time in its history and concluded a beautiful chapter of glory.

One of the key figures in this triumph had no vanity. Or rather, he had only one: seeing Flamengo win. Ronaldo Angelim was honored with one of the most important goals in Flamengo's history and was hailed as a hero. Eight years later, the defender rediscovered the trophy of the sixth Brazilian championship in Fla Memória and exclusively recounted his journey to the Official Website leading up to that momentous afternoon of December 6, 2009.

For Ronaldo Angelim, the hope of winning the cup in 2009 arose on a special date for Flamengo: November 15th. On the club's anniversary, the Mais Querido faced Náutico at Aflitos and, with goals from Petkovic and Adriano, came away with a 2-0 victory.

"We really started to believe in the title after the game against Náutico. A little earlier, Andrade had done some calculations and there were nine games left, seven of them away from home. In that scenario, we couldn't believe we would fight for this trophy. But we kept playing and winning, and the opponents who were ahead in the table started to stumble. After that victory at Aflitos, we entered the fight for good," recalled Angelim.

On November 22, 78.639 fans graced one of the most beautiful mosaics the Maracanã has ever seen. "The biggest fans in the world make the difference" was the slogan that greeted Flamengo in one of the most important matches of the year. Facing Goiás, Flamengo had the opportunity to overtake São Paulo in the standings and take the lead in the Brasileirão. However, the 0-0 draw kept Flamengo in second place, frustrating the players and the fans in the stadium.

"We had the opportunity to take the lead playing against Goiás at home, and we ended up having a slip-up that no one expected. If we had won that match, we would have finished the championship a round earlier. However, if that had happened, I might not be here today telling this story. The Brasileirão could have ended on my birthday, November 29th, against Corinthians, since we won there 2-0," said the former defender.

"I remember being criticized a lot in that match against Goiás, because in the last minute the ball fell to me, I cut inside the defender and shot, but Harlei made the save. Many complained that I didn't touch Adriano, but later I saw that he was offside and I believe I made the right play. The credit went to the goalkeeper, who made a spectacular save," Angelim added about that match at Maracanã.

 Away win and leadership in the penultimate round

On November 29th, Flamengo traveled to Brinco de Ouro Stadium to face Corinthians in the penultimate round of the Brasileirão. Goals from Zé Roberto and Léo Moura secured a 2-0 victory, three points, and the top spot for Flamengo, which had suffered a stumble from São Paulo. With that, Flamengo returned home with only its own power to secure the title.

"Then we had this game against Corinthians without Adriano, who was injured and out. We won 2-0 in Campinas on my birthday. When we got those points and Goiás beat São Paulo, we were left to depend only on ourselves. Then what everyone saw happened," he commented.

It was a 17-year wait. Countless minutes spent holding back a celebration that was long in coming. On that afternoon of December 6, 2009, more than 85 people filled every inch of the Maracanã stadium to celebrate an indescribable victory after the final whistle.

"It wasn't easy. Grêmio came to win, and they wanted to pick up points at Maracanã. Although we played a great game, it was incredibly hot that day, and we had an experienced squad against a squad full of youngsters. We were relying heavily on Pet and Adriano, who were the decisive players. However, they were very well marked, and the task of scoring the goals fell to David Braz and me. I was well positioned on that corner, and we managed to get Flamengo out of a 17-year wait," concluded the Flamengo idol.

The 2-1 victory over Grêmio at Maracanã wasn't easy. Proudly featuring key players, the 2009 Flamengo team will forever have Ronaldo Angelim as one of the heroes of that day. With the number 4 on his back and the humility of a great idol, the defender wrote his story on pages that will never be erased.