Why Flamengo's youngsters shone vs Mirassol but struggled in Carioca | OneFootball

Team That Drew with Mirassol in the Last Round of the 2025 Brasileirão Forms the Base of the Squad That Fails in the Carioca

The base of Flamengo left a good impression last December, when they drew 3-3 with Mirassol in the final round of the Brasileirão. A month later, the scenario has changed. With only one point from three matches in the Carioca, the under-20 team is out of the competition's qualifying zone. The team's coach, Bruno Pivetti, pointed out the difference between the scenarios.

— I don't believe there is an impact (the performance in the Carioca) on their careers because they are under-20 players playing among professionals. Unlike, for example, the Mirassol game, where we had some reinforcements, which adds more weight to the team. These are under-20 players who are doing their best to represent the club in the best way possible, to provide the professional squad with the best preparation conditions — said Pivetti, after the defeat to Volta Redonda on Saturday (17).

— Within our possibilities, we are trying. Today's game (Saturday) ended up being unfair due to the early sending off. It's even hard to make any analysis. These are players who will evolve, they have a lot of potential. Most of them were born in 2007, which is the second year of juniors. These are players who need to mature, to be better prepared to have longevity in football and consequently have a happy career — added the Flamengo coach.

WHAT WAS THE DIFFERENCE IN THE GAME AGAINST MIRASSOL?

In summary, some players from the professional squad ‘reinforced’ the under-20 team against Mirassol. For example, Michael and Evertton Araújo. In addition, the youngsters Wallace Yan and Dyogo Alves, who played in the match at Maião, did not face Volta Redonda on Saturday (17).

AND NOW, WHO PLAYS?

With the youth squad disappointing in the Carioca, Flamengo will discuss in the coming days who will play against Vasco, on Wednesday (21), at Maracanã. There is a possibility that the professionals will gradually return for the classic. The match kicks off at 9:30 p.m. (Brasília time).

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