Relief in defeat: Jair Ventura ‘celebrates’ narrow loss to Flamengo | OneFootball

Superior at the Maracanã, Flamengo beat Vitória 2-1 but wasted chances for a rout

Flamengo took the lead in the fifth round of the Copa do Brasil by beating Vitória 2-1 this Wednesday (22), at a Maracanã that witnessed the Rio club’s dominance. After the match, coach Jair Ventura practically celebrated the narrow defeat, highlighting how difficult it is to face Mengão’s squad and valuing the fact that the tie remains open.

— Flamengo are a great team that will fight for every competition. But within our reality, we played a very competitive match. It is very difficult to be competitive against these teams, especially away from home — he said, before continuing:

— But today everyone saw what they want to see from the team: organization even with difficulties and absences. We leave here with a fair result and go back to Barradão still alive. We know our strength at home. One goal and we can take it to penalties — Jair Ventura concluded in the post-match press conference.

WHY DID JAIR VENTURA ‘VALUE’ THE DEFEAT?

Flamengo’s dominance at the Maracanã explains Jair Ventura’s ‘relief’ with the narrow defeat. The Rio Rubro-Negro controlled 61% of possession and squandered countless clear chances through Pedro, Arrascaeta and Cebolinha. In addition, ‘Sofascore’ statistics confirm the one-sided nature of the match: Mengão had 21 shots compared to just five from the Bahia side.

WHEN IS THE SECOND LEG?

The return match takes place on May 14 (Thursday), at 9:30 p.m. (Brasília time), at Barradão. Thanks to the 2-1 win in the first leg, Flamengo will secure a place in the round of 16 of the Copa do Brasil with any draw in Salvador.

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