Flamengo and Corinthians try to control the game (and referee) for the Copa do Brasil

Flamengo and Corinthians decide the title of the Copa do Brasil on Wednesday night (19), at 21:45, in Rio de Janeiro. After a goalless draw in the first leg, at Itaquera stadium, in São Paulo, red-black and white-and-white duel for the cup at Maracanã, a match that, due to the characteristics of the teams, involves controlling the ball.

Judging by the discussions since last week, it also goes through the influence on the arbitration.

The black and white side felt hampered by the non-marking of a penalty when Léo Pereira touched the ball with his arm. Another black and white complaint is that João Gomes, hanging, should have been expelled when he killed the counterattack in the final stage. The midfielder says he didn’t even deserve the yellow card he received in the first half – and took it away from the second match.

What was seen from the final whistle in the east side of São Paulo was a confrontation of narratives, with attempts by both parties to pressure the referee scheduled for the meeting in Rio, Wilton Pereira Sampaio from Goiás. Even the Campeonato Brasileiro table entered the debate, with each club exploiting every loophole to show themselves injured.

Portuguese coach Vítor Pereira took to heart the promise that Corinthians would discuss the tie, an expression he usually uses to talk about his team’s competitiveness. Reminded that he doesn’t usually talk about refereeing, he warned, even before starting his post-match interview in Itaquera: “Ah, but today I’m going to talk”.

So did President Duilio Monteiro Alves, who filed a complaint with the CBF (Brazilian Football Confederation) “with the intention of pointing out the serious flaws, demanding trained professionals and demanding urgency in standardizing criteria”. The entity maintained that the decision not to take the penalty was correct.

On the other hand, Flamengo complained about the postponement of Corinthians’ departure over the weekend. The team would play for the Brazilian in Goiânia, on Saturday (15), against Goiás, which sold tickets only to its fans. The São Paulo club appealed to the STJD (Superior Court of Sports Justice), which recognized its right to have fans in the stadium and suspended the duel on Saturday itself.

“It’s a bad event for Brazilian football. Not even in the floodplain! In the floodplain, four or five hours before, you know if there’s going to be a game or not”, said the vice president of football at the Rio club, Marcos Braz. “Not having a game is very bad for the championship, for the event, for everyone involved, especially with Corinthians in the episode, because they would play Saturday and Wednesday.”

The argument is that the alvinegro team will enter the final more relaxed. Flamengo played on Saturday, with a team that had only reserve players – with the exception of João Gomes, who will not enter the field in the decision. Corinthians would also have no starters on the field over the weekend, but that didn’t stop Braz from exploring the postponement.

In addition to all the backstage pressure dispute, there is, of course, a strategic duel. Both coaches like their teams to have the ball at their feet. They are not designed to defend against players in the back and are uncomfortable when forced to score close to their own goal.

In Itaquera’s balanced match, the teams alternated moments of dominance, and each one took advantage precisely when they controlled the possession.

Vítor Pereira always repeats that he expects to see his team “pressing”. As the squad has athletes with little defensive participation, as is the case with Róger Guedes and Renato Augusto, the idea is to steal the ball in the attacking field so as not to have to score in the defense field.

“The intention is not to let them play. Flamengo is a team that needs to be pressured, otherwise they start to lose respect, put a lot of people on the opposing defensive line, start playing between the lines, knitting the game, and pushes us back. We have to press harder. If we have more ball, there is room to play”, said the Portuguese.

This space, he observed, is on the sides of the field. Dorival Júnior adopts a diamond formation in the midfield at Flamengo, without players specifically responsible for protecting the edges. Therefore, Corinthians will seek to move quickly from one side to the other to catch the unprotected rival.

The problem is having the ball.

The red-black team has several talented athletes and likes to arrive exchanging passes through the middle, with Éverton Ribeiro, Arrascaeta, Gabriel Barbosa and Pedro. “Our team knows how to attack spaces like no one else”, said Dorival, pointing out that the rival did a good job, in the first match, to congest the entrance of the area.

To break the blockade, Flamengo will have a full Maracanã. Corinthians, which usually has very noisy fans in Rio de Janeiro, had the support of more than 27,000 in an open training session in Itaquera, last Monday (17th). Thousands more attended the departure and spent their energy so that the club can celebrate again on the stage where it was world champion in 2000.

The glory in the first relevant final among the most popular teams in Brazil – the white-and-white victory in the 1991 Supercopa do Brasil was accompanied by less than 3,000 paying fans – is also worth a good prize. Each team has already secured R$41.8 million for reaching the final, and the winner will receive another R$35 million.

Flamengo x Corinthians

21:45, at Maracanã, Rio de Janeiro (RJ)
On TV: Globo, SporTV, Premiere and Prime Video