Luiz Araújo explains odd celebration in Flamengo v Mirassol | OneFootball

Luiz Araújo scored one of the goals in Flamengo’s rout

The “Ex’s Law” never fails in Brazilian football. This Sunday (16), Luiz Araújo returned to Estádio Maião, where he came through the ranks, and scored one of the goals in Flamengo’s 5-1 thrashing of Mirassol. During the celebration, the No. 7 simply ran across the entire field and went to celebrate with the Nation in attendance in the interior of São Paulo. The winger explained that his relatives were there.

— Being able to score in a special match, with my whole family here… I’m sure many of them had never seen me score in person. That’s why I ran across the field, I made a point of going over there to them, because it’s a special moment in my life and in theirs too —, explained Luiz Araújo.

With the result, Flamengo moved right up behind Palmeiras. Now, the São Paulo side is only three points behind Mengão. Luiz Araújo acknowledged that the clash with Mirassol became even more important after the leaders lost to Fluminense on Saturday (15). In addition, the player looked ahead to Wednesday’s (19) Libertadores showdown against Cruzeiro.

— We knew how important this match was, after Palmeiras lost, giving us the chance to close the gap even more. So we went all in to get the result. We did it, and we played a great game. It will be completely different against Cruzeiro, the Maracanã will be packed, with the fans supporting us. That will make all the difference. We’ll try to play a great match and qualify —, Luiz Araújo stressed.

HOW WAS LUIZ ARAÚJO’S GOAL?

Seven minutes into the second half, Jorge Carrascal, Pedro and Luiz Araújo combined well in a passing move. Then the Colombian laid it off to the former Mirassol player, who kept his composure before finishing into the back of the net. In the celebration, the No. 7 did not hide his emotion over the goal.

Luiz Araújo was injured in the friendly against Olimpia (PAR) on July 17. After a heavy challenge, the winger suffered a left knee injury. In other words, the forward returned to the pitch exactly one month after the physical problem. In official matches, his last appearance had been against Coritiba, before the World Cup, at the end of May.

— I feel good. It was many days of treatment. Focusing, of course, on coming back well. Today I’m very happy to be back and to be playing and getting my rhythm back. The hardest thing after coming back from an injury is the rhythm. So today I was able to get my rhythm back, play well and help Flamengo. I’m sure this will help me a lot in Wednesday’s match —, he added.

WILL LUIZ ARAÚJO PLAY ON WEDNESDAY?

With Luiz Araújo available, Flamengo host Cruzeiro at the Maracanã starting at 9:30 p.m. (Brasília time). Since the match at Mineirão ended 1-1, whoever wins advances to the Copa Libertadores quarterfinals to face Independiente del Valle (ECU) or Tolima (COL).

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