After serving a suspension in the match against Internacional last Sunday (25.07), defender Welinton is eager to return to playing as a starter for Flamengo. And this could happen next weekend, when Rubro-Negro faces Vasco da Gama, at Maracanã.

For the player, the fact that he sat out the match at Beira-Rio doesn't affect his playing ability. Welinton believes he's well prepared for the derby.

"It doesn't change much that I missed out on the match against Inter. I'm calm. The team has been improving in the competition, and by working hard this week, we're in a position to arrive in the match against Vasco in good shape and get a positive result," he said.

The defender expects a balanced match, as Flamengo and Vasco usually are, and is banking on the Flamengo and Vasco team's chemistry to leave the field with the victory.

"We expect a great game. Vasco has great players, but we'll try to take advantage of their lack of teamwork in attack to try and come away with the win," said the defender, who asked for the fans' support in the match.

"I hope we have a lot of Flamengo fans helping us, because that's really important in every game," he added.

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