Early moaning? Abel Ferreira pressures ref before Flamengo v Palmeiras | OneFootball

Flamengo and Palmeiras face off on Saturday (23) in a match that pits the Brasileirão leader against the runner-up

The ball only starts rolling on Saturday (23), but the traditional strategy of ‘pressuring behind the scenes’ has already been set in motion by Palmeiras. With an eye on the clash against Flamengo, coach Abel Ferreira used the post-defeat press conference after the loss to Cerro Porteño (PAR) in the Libertadores to get ahead of the refereeing debate and demand “courage” from whoever is assigned to the showdown between the Brasileirão leader and runner-up.

— They are two great teams that have built a very strong rivalry in the fight for titles. Above all, I hope it’s a good match and that the referee chosen has courage as his main trait -, he said.

— It’s very important that the referee has courage. Maybe I can already guess who it will be; it takes courage to officiate a match like this. May it be a great game and may Palmeiras win, as we always try to do, just as we did today -, Abel Ferreira concluded.

A DECISIVE MATCH?

The match takes on highly decisive importance for both teams. Although Palmeiras does not risk immediately losing the lead this round even in the event of a defeat, a Flamengo victory would bring the Rubro-Negro right up to the top of the table.

As Flamengo has a game in hand in the competition, the head-to-head clash becomes crucial in the title race for both sides. That is exactly why the Portuguese coach’s warning tone seeks to ‘shift the responsibility’ onto the officiating crew, raising the temperature for a duel that promises to shake up the championship.

HAS THE OFFICIATING CREW ALREADY BEEN DECIDED?

Despite Abel Ferreira’s pressure, so far the CBF has still not announced the refereeing assignment for the match. It is worth remembering that the ball starts rolling for Flamengo x Palmeiras on Saturday (23), at 9 p.m. (Brasília time), at the Maracanã, for the 17th round of the Brasileirão.

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