Pedro on what Flamengo's rout of Mirassol means for the Libertadores | OneFootball

With two goals, Pedro shone in Flamengo’s win over Mirassol

A win in the Brasileirão, but with an impact on the Libertadores. That’s how Pedro assessed Flamengo’s 5-1 thrashing of Mirassol, 5-1, this Sunday (16), at Maião. Scorer of two goals in the 23rd round of the national championship, the No. 9 looked ahead to Wednesday’s (19) clash against Cruzeiro in the Round of 16 of the continental tournament.

— It was a great match, not just from me, but from the whole team. We played very well at their place, which is also a tough field to play on. Now we have even more confidence for Wednesday’s match. And that was our purpose, to win here at their ground and get closer to Palmeiras — Pedro began, in an interview still on the pitch at Maião.

— Now we trust that in the Libertadores we’ll go through as well, God willing. It’ll be another great clash against Cruzeiro, a great team, and it’ll be difficult. But we’re going to work in these two days we have so we can come in strong and get the result at home — added the No. 9.

HOW DID PEDRO PLAY AGAINST MIRASSOL?

In the first half, Pedro was not heavily involved by his Flamengo teammates. However, that changed in the second half. Just ten minutes in, the striker got on the end of an Ayrton Lucas cross to score the third. With 20 minutes played, the finisher made it 4-0 with an assist from Carrascal. The Colombian himself, Samuel Lino, and Luiz Araújo scored Flamengo’s other goals.

With the result, Flamengo pulled right up behind leaders Palmeiras, as Pedro mentioned. Now, the gap is just three points: 48 to 45, with Mengão having a game in hand, precisely against Mirassol. The match, however, has not yet been scheduled by the CBF.

WHAT WILL WEDNESDAY BE LIKE?

Confident after the thrashing of Mirassol, Flamengo face Cruzeiro next Wednesday (19), starting at 9:30 p.m. (Brasília time), at the Maracanã. Since the match at Mineirão ended 1-1, whoever wins in Rio de Janeiro will advance to the quarterfinals of the Copa Libertadores da América.

WHAT IS THE AUTHOR’S OPINION?

— A win that is three times as satisfying for Flamengo. First, a thrashing is always very good. Then, it helped them close in on Palmeiras. Third, it boosts morale for the Libertadores. We could even add a fourth point, since Leonardo Jardim managed to rest half of the starting team. Names like Emerson Royal, Léo Ortiz, Jorginho, Arrascaeta, and Samuel Lino should start against Cruzeiro and were on the bench in Mirassol — opined Pedro Paulo Catonho, journalist for Coluna do Fla.

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