Ecuador back on Flamengo’s Libertadores road, history warns of tests ahead | OneFootball

Ecuador has figured in three of Flamengo’s four Libertadores triumphs and is on their path again on Thursday. According to Globo.com, they face Independiente del Valle at 21:30 Brasília time at the Estádio Olímpico Atahualpa, with a semi-final place on the line.

Across these trips, Flamengo have 11 wins, four draws and seven defeats. Their first visit came in June 1952 in Quito, at the same venue, when they beat Colombia’s Boca Juniors de Cali 6-3, beginning a 74-year journey.

They also drew 2-2 there with Del Valle in the 2020 Recopa Sudamericana, then won 3-0 at the Maracanã to lift it. Jorge Jesus led the side, Bruno Henrique and Pedro scoring in Quito.

Ecuador has tested Flamengo even in title seasons. The 2022 final in Guayaquil was the exception, a 1-0 win over Athletico-PR. In 2019 they fell 2-1 at LDU after a contentious Bruno Henrique opener, taking qualification to a final-round trip to Peñarol needing a draw.

With Abel Braga suspended, assistant Leomir replaced Arrascaeta with Diego, a switch that blunted creativity and angered fans.

The last-16 trip to Emelec, Jorge Jesus’s fifth game, brought a 2-0 defeat. Back in Rio, Gabigol scored two in normal time, Diego Alves starred in the shootout and Flamengo advanced, losing only three more times thereafter.

In 2025, a 0-0 at LDU typified a scratchy group stage, leaving Flamengo third with four points and behind Central Córdoba on goal difference after a match of few chances and many errors.

Source: Globo.com

“Artificial intelligence was used to assist in creating this article based on reporting from the original source quoted.”