Flamengo’s Plata has regrets and takes key step on social media | OneFootball

After archiving photos in the Flamengo shirt, Plata once again has images wearing the Manto on Instagram

Is the love back? At the start of the year, when he was going through a turbulent spell at Flamengo, Gonzalo Plata archived all the photos of himself in the red-and-black shirt on his Instagram profile. Now back in form and in head coach Leonardo Jardim’s good graces, the Ecuadorian has restored the images of himself wearing the Manto.

At the end of March, besides deleting the Flamengo photos from his profile, Gonzalo Plata also unfollowed the club. As for the images, the only exception was the one celebrating the 2025 Libertadores title over Palmeiras, in Lima, Peru, where he posed with the trophy. Aside from that, the forward only kept memories of the Ecuador national team or other clubs from his career.

Now, Plata has regained his status as an undisputed starter for Flamengo and received praise from Leonardo Jardim. As a result, the Ecuadorian followed Mengão again on Instagram. The winger was one of the best players on the pitch against Cusco (PER) in the 3-0 Libertadores win.

WHAT DID LEONARDO JARDIM SAY ABOUT PLATA, AFTER ALL?

— He’s a player who had a difficult adaptation period. Then he integrated well in terms of behavior, attitude and ability. Unfortunately, he had a knee problem that kept him out for a week and a half. He trained under restrictions to face Palmeiras. A player who goes to the national team does not want to play in pain —, began Leonardo Jardim.

— Three days passed and he recovered, so he became fully available. Besides being intense, he has a great team spirit. He tried to help even while going to the national team. He did not hesitate to help even while running the risk of getting injured. It’s a change in attitude that I admire a lot —, the coach then added at a press conference on Tuesday (26).

SO WHAT IS PLATA’S FUTURE?

If before Plata was seen as ‘transferable’ at Flamengo, now the forward’s status has changed. However, the player’s future will only be decided after the World Cup. The player was released by Mengão and is with the Ecuador national team preparing for the tournament.

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