Arrascaeta says Flamengo will pay the price for 2025 success in 2026 | OneFootball

Arrascaeta also vented about the unawarded penalty against São Paulo

Under the command of Filipe Luís, Flamengo lost two consecutive games for the first time. The rough patch has an explanation, according to Arrascaeta: the team's success in 2025. Having played in the World Cup at the end of December last year, the Rubro-Negro is still struggling with physical issues.

— Happy to be back, gradually getting into rhythm. We are paying a bit for the success of 2025, we ended the season a little later and are returning gradually. But we know these are already important games, like this Brasileirão. Now we have a final ahead and we need to be at our best to win another trophy — said Arrascaeta, projecting the Supercopa do Brasil against Corinthians.

With the main team, Flamengo has three games this year: debuting with a 1-0 victory over Vasco, and losses by 2-1 to Fluminense and São Paulo. As a result, the Rubro-Negro is out of the qualification zone in the Carioca and started the Brasileirão with a loss.

WHAT ELSE DID ARRASCAETA SAY?

In the mixed zone at Morumbi, after the 2-1 defeat to São Paulo, Arrascaeta also vented about the unawarded penalty in the last play of the match. The number 10 commented that he wouldn't have missed the goal if he hadn't been touched from behind by Alan Franco from the opposing team.

— The guy not only touched my foot when I was about to shoot, but he also completely threw me off from hitting the ball 100%. The ball changed direction, and the speed of the shot clearly wasn't what I intended. It was a very easy chance to score. This is a play that needs to be well-analyzed because it determines the outcome of the game. We could have had a draw that would have helped us; it was strange because the referee didn't even look at the play — commented the Rubro-Negro idol.

— We were very sad about this because later we saw the images, there was contact, and I can't understand how a touch on the foot, at that moment, doesn't interfere with the completion of the play? But we can't do anything about it — he concluded.

WHEN IS FLAMENGO'S NEXT GAME?

As Arrascaeta highlighted, the focus now is the Supercopa do Brasil. On Sunday (01), Flamengo will face Corinthians, aiming for the fourth championship. The match kicks off at 4 PM (Brasília time) at the Mané Garrincha Stadium, in the federal capital.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.