Emerson Royal reveals ‘dressing-room pact’, why Flamengo can’t choose | OneFootball

Emerson Royal highlighted the responsibility of wearing Flamengo’s shirt in any competition

With a 2-1 win over Vitória this Wednesday (22), Flamengo took the lead in the first leg of the fifth round of the Copa do Brasil. After the match, full-back Emerson Royal downplayed outside speculation about priorities and stressed that the weight of representing Mengão requires the players to maintain maximum intensity in every competition.

— We showed on the pitch that there is no priority. Every time we step onto the field and wear the Flamengo shirt, we know the responsibility is huge. Sometimes we see what people say on the outside, that there would be one priority or another, but within the squad we don’t have that; every competition we enter, it will be to win -, he said.

DID FLAMENGO ROTATE THE SQUAD AGAINST VITÓRIA?

Despite Emerson Royal’s statement, the tactical choices on the touchline pointed to a different strategy. That is because, against Vitória, Flamengo used a heavily changed lineup compared to the starters in the Brasileirão and the Libertadores. The coaching staff used the match at the Maracanã to rotate the squad and give minutes to players such as Everton Cebolinha, De La Cruz and Luiz Araújo.

In addition, energy management was evident in the decision to rest key players in the squad. In this way, coach Leonardo Jardim rested names such as Arrascaeta throughout the entire first half, confirming the tendency to prioritize physical wear and tear for the other competitions this season.

WHAT IS FLAMENGO’S NEXT MATCH?

After the win in the Copa do Brasil, Flamengo now turns its focus to the battle for the top spot in the Brasileirão. In that regard, the Rubro-Negro faces Atlético-MG next Sunday (26), at 8:30 p.m. (Brasília time), at Arena MRV. The match will be broadcast on pay TV through SporTV and Premiere.

At the moment, Flamengo sits second in the competition with 23 points. A win in Belo Horizonte is crucial to cut the six-point gap to leaders Palmeiras, who have played one more match in the table.

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