Filipe Luís on choosing Léo Ortiz for Flamengo v Cruz Azul at Club World Cup | OneFootball

Filipe Luís included Léo Ortiz among the starters after almost two months

The defender Léo Ortiz returned as a starter for Flamengo during the 2-1 victory against Cruz Azul (MEX) this Wednesday (10), in Doha. After the quarter-final match of the Intercontinental Cup, coach Filipe Luís explained why he chose the athlete over Danilo.

— My decision for today was that Ortiz is recovered. He played practically the entire season, over 50 games. He had a spectacular season, at the level of the Brazilian national team. He, Léo Pereira, along with the full-backs and Danilo formed the least breached defense in the Brazilian championship, across all competitions. It is a solid, very strong defense —, began Filipe Luís.

— I believed it was a game that Léo Ortiz deserved to play. He is well, returned from injury, recovered. I understood it was a game for him. But the good thing is that I have Danilo ready if needed to come in and if needed to play the next game, he is available. Besides the great leader and now eternal idol he became after what happened in the final of the Libertadores. He is always there to help the team —, concluded the Flamengo coach.

WHAT IS THE CONTEXT OF LÉO ORTIZ'S SITUATION?

Léo Ortiz was injured on October 19 of this year, during Flamengo's match against Palmeiras, in the Brazilian Championship. After this period, the athlete played only once, against Racing (ARG), in the Libertadores Cup. Finally, Ortiz also remained on the bench in three opportunities.

During this period, Danilo was a starter for Flamengo and gained favor with the red-black fans. This is because the experienced defender scored the title-winning goal against Palmeiras in the final of the Libertadores Cup, in Lima, Peru.

WHEN DOES FLAMENGO PLAY?

Thus, with Léo Ortiz available, Flamengo is now focused on Pyramids (EGY). The red-black team faces the Africans next Saturday (13), at 2 PM (Brasília time), in Doha, in the semi-final of the Intercontinental Cup.

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