Fluminense offer little, crack under Mirassol pressure in Brasileirão | OneFootball

Fluminense were defeated 1-0 by Mirassol on Saturday night at Maião Stadium in the 17th round of the Brazilian Championship. Midfielder Denilson scored the winning goal for the São Paulo side, who could have won by a bigger margin if not for goalkeeper Fábio’s saves. In the first half, the home side pressed Fluminense’s build-up play and created the best chances, only to be denied by Fábio, who made a great save from Alesson’s header. Shortly after, Denilson unleashed a rocket from the edge of the box to open the scoring: 1-0. Fluminense had more possession, but failed to turn it into chances.

Before halftime, in the final play of the half, Samuel Xavier was pulled by Reinaldo in the box and went down. The referee awarded a penalty. However, after a VAR review, the decision was overturned.

In the second half, things remained difficult for Tricolor. Mirassol controlled the game without major scares and also had the best chances to extend their lead, once again being denied by Fábio, who made at least two great saves from efforts by Denilson and Reinaldo. Fluminense, meanwhile, spent virtually the entire second half without managing to seriously threaten the opposing goal, recording just one shot

Zubeldía tried to change the game with the introductions of Cano, Riquelme, and Wesley Natã, but the substitutions had no effect. The team continued to struggle creatively and showed little attacking edge, ultimately leaving the pitch with a below-par performance at Maião.

With the defeat, Fluminense remain in third place with 30 points, but miss the chance to close the gap on the leaders, who face each other this round.

Now, Tricolor turn their attention to the final round of the Libertadores group stage. Next Wednesday, at 9:30 p.m., the team will face Deportivo La Guaira at the Maracanã.

Photo: Lucas Merçon/FFC

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