In the 18th minute, Reinaldo Rueda called Vinicius Junior from warm-ups, gave him instructions, and sent him on for the decisive Fla-Flu match. It didn't take much for him to change the course of the match. In the next play, a ball down the right, a precise glance at Everton Ribeiro, and a clean pass. His play led to Felipe Vizeu's goal, putting the Mais Querido back in the match.

On Wednesday night (1), the young player managed to set the classic on fire and helped take Flamengo to the semifinals. After the match at Maracanã, Vinicius spoke to the press in the mixed zone, evaluating the 3-3 result against Fluminense in the Conmebol South American.

"I always try to help the team in some way when I come on. Today I succeeded tactically, and the group instilled a lot of confidence from the first ball I played to Everton Ribeiro, which led to Felipe Vizeu's goal. I was very confident, and everything went well," the player analyzed.

Regarding the difference in the red-and-black team's attitude in the second half, Vinicius commented that the group managed to find common ground. "We talked in the locker room at halftime and knew something was missing: more desire, more ball possession. In the second half, we managed to do that and won the game," he said.

The Boy from the Nest also spoke about how it felt to step onto the field for the match. "I knew I needed to contribute in some way. I trained a lot this week with Rueda, who's been helping me a lot, and today I was able to come in and set the game on fire. It was one of my best matches here. I always prefer to play well and come away with the win," Vinicius added.

Now Flamengo turns its attention to the Brazilian Championship, facing Grêmio on Sunday (5), at 17 pm, at Arena do Grêmio, in Porto Alegre.