Since the game was marked by a “billiards penalty,” this analysis will flirt with metaphors from another sport that also involves balls on a green “cloth” throughout the text.
recovered from two consecutive stumbles at Maracanã and returned to winning ways in the Brazilian Championship: a 2-1 victory over Criciúma last Saturday at Mané Garrincha. But it was a struggle, like that shot where the ball rolls in the pocket, spinning slowly, it seems like it will stop and suddenly drops, crying!
The billiards-like play in the final minutes steals the spotlight, but it cannot hide the hits and misses of the red-black team. With the much-anticipated return of Arrascaeta and De la Cruz to the team, a more dominant and creative team was expected, but that was not what happened in the first half.
seemed anxious, with players making silly mistakes, and it took 14 minutes to build their first attack in the game. They saw Criciúma being better and going into halftime not only with the advantage on the scoreboard but also with more shots: eight against six.
Tite during Flamengo‘s game — Photo: André Durão
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only had two chances in the first half: one with Pedro at 14 minutes, after a beautiful play by De la Cruz with Ayrton Lucas, where he shot over the bar and could have passed to Cebolinha free
(see in the image below)
. And another one at the end with Fabrício Bruno, at 46, after a corner kick in the box
. Obviously, we must take into consideration the issue of the poor pitch at Mané Garrincha, but that wasn’t the main cause of the low performance.
Chance missed by Pedro in Flamengo vs Criciúma — Photo: Reproduction
Only De la Cruz was managing to put pressure on Criciúma’s ball exit; Arrascaeta and Gerson were participating less, Pedro was well marked… Cebolinha was the exception and tormented the opposing defense on the right side. And Rodrigo’s goal for Criciúma at 34 minutes made the players even more nervous on the field. After all, Tite’s
had only one comeback in 10 opportunities.
The boos at the end of the first half set the tone that things were not working out, even with the considered ideal red-black midfield, with Pulgar, De la Cruz, Arrascaeta, and Gerson. Tite gave a vote of confidence and returned from halftime with the same lineup. But patience didn’t last long, and at nine minutes, he substituted David Luiz (already booked) and Ayrton Lucas for Léo Pereira and Viña.
Viña did well in Flamengo vs Criciúma — Photo: Marcelo Cortes / CRF
The change on the wing worked, and
began to have more build-up play inside with the Uruguayan wingback on the field.
Viña came on very well and was involved in decisive plays: he gave the ball for Arrascaeta to win a penalty; gave the pre-assist in Pedro’s goal and created the chance for a missed goal by Gabigol
. Furthermore, Tite was brave to take Pulgar off, who was having a good game, to drop De la Cruz back and bring in Luiz Araújo at 23 minutes.
Tite’s move changed the game. With a man up and a more creative team on the field (Arrascaeta participated more), the coach put Criciúma in a tough spot (a billiards metaphor meaning a dead-end situation).
The opposing coach began to make substitutions to have more energy in marking, but the quality of the replacements did not keep up.
equalized, and soon after, Tite went all in with Gabigol replacing Gerson.
The second-half numbers reflect
Flamengo‘s
improvement. The team had nine shots against six from Criciúma, who posed no threat, and
had five goal chances: the penalty missed by Pedro at 18 minutes; Pulgar’s header hitting the crossbar in the next play; the beautiful goal by the number 9 after an excellent move at 30; Gabigol’s shot over the bar at 37
(see in the image below)
and the penalty converted by the number 99 at 43
.
Chance missed by Gabigol in Flamengo vs Criciúma — Photo: Reproduction
Speaking of the penalty, Gabigol showed that even in a slump, he still has what it takes for decisive moments. There was pressure to avoid a third consecutive stumble at home, which would distance them from the title race, and Pedro had already missed one in the game. But number 99 asked for the ball and took a good shot, displacing the good goalkeeper Gustavo.
And showing that he can still be useful to
in his possible last year at the club.
And to continue in the billiards theme, Gabigol pocketed the second comeback of the “Tite Era”. The performance still needs to improve considerably, defensive aerial play became a problem again, but the
result gives peace of mind for the coach to try to fit this team back together, which has a lot of potential at full strength and now needs to switch from billiards to shining
. The players returned to Rio de Janeiro right after the match and now begin preparations to face Vitória next Wednesday, at 8 PM (Brasília time), at Barradão.
Flamengo players celebrate victory over Criciúma — Photo: Marcelo Cortes / CRF
Fonte: netfla.com.br
