Flamengo Ousted by Estudiantes on Penalties in Copa Libertadores Semi-Final

In a fiercely contested encounter at the Maracanã, Flamengo battled to the end but could not secure a place in the Conmebol Libertadores final. After a 0-0 draw with Estudiantes on Thursday (22) in the second leg of the semi-final, the Rubro-Negro were undone 3-2 in the penalty shootout and bowed out of the continental competition.

The Match

In the opening stages, Estudiantes took the initiative and pressed forward in search of an opening goal. Flamengo quickly steadied themselves and began to dominate possession in the attacking third. In contested areas, the Argentine side adopted a physical approach, though the referee refrained from issuing yellow cards in the early exchanges.

Estudiantes created the first real danger and struck the crossbar in the 16th minute through a Baltasar Rodríguez effort from distance. Rossi got a touch before the ball sailed over the line for a corner. In Flamengo's first meaningful attacking move, Carrascal played a fine pass for Pedro into the box. The number 9 controlled and flicked a heel pass for Emerson Royal to strike first-time, but Núñez made a crucial block to deny the chance.

Slowly, Flamengo grew into the contest and fashioned another opportunity at the 32-minute mark. Pedro received the ball with his back to goal, shrugged off two defenders, and drove into the area. His cutback pass was dangerous, and the ball drifted narrowly past Carrascal, who could not finish from the second post. After two minutes of stoppage time, the referee ended the first half with the score locked at 0-0.

Shortly after the restart, Estudiantes were reduced to ten men. Baltasar Rodríguez committed a foul on Samuel Lino near the area, received a second yellow card, and was sent off. With the numerical advantage, Flamengo took control of proceedings, threading passes through midfield in search of gaps in the Argentine defence.

In the 18th minute, Arrascaeta returned to action following recovery from wrist surgery and replaced Carrascal. Despite their superiority in possession, the Rubro-Negro found it difficult to break through a resolute Argentine backline that remained compact and gave little away.

Down the stretch, coach Leonardo Jardim made three further changes: Bruno Henrique, Plata, and Ayrton Lucas entered the fray in place of Erick Pulgar, Samuel Lino, and Alex Sandro, respectively.

Immediately after the substitutions, Flamengo created a chance. Paquetá sent a towering pass for Plata, who headed firmly but was denied by a save from Muslera. At 41 minutes, Paquetá himself tested the goalkeeper again with a powerful header that flew just wide of the post.

Despite sustained Rubro-Negro pressure in the closing stages, the scoreline remained unchanged. After five minutes of added time, the referee brought proceedings to a close, and the contest moved to a penalty shootout to decide the finalists. In the spot-kicks, Flamengo came up short 3-2 and exited the Libertadores.

Flamengo

Rossi; Emerson Royal, Léo Ortiz, Léo Pereira and Alex Sandro (Ayrton Lucas); Erick Pulgar (Bruno Henrique), Jorginho and Lucas Paquetá; Carrascal (Arrascaeta), Samuel Lino (Plata) and Pedro. Coach: Leonardo Jardim.

Estudiantes

Muslera; Mancuso, González Pírez, Santiago Núñez and Marcos Rojo (Tomás Palacios); Piovi, Alexis Castro (Sosa) and Baltasar Rodríguez; Joaquín Correa (Tiago Palacios), Carrillo (Gaich) and Tobio Burgos (Cetré). Coach: Alexander Medina.

Next Outing

Flamengo return to action next Monday (26) to face Atlético-MG at 8 p.m. at the Maracanã in a matchday 32 fixture of the Brazilian Championship.

Match Stats

Flamengo 0 (2) x (3) 0 Estudiantes – Conmebol Libertadores | Semi-Final – Second Leg

Venue: Maracanã, Rio de Janeiro (RJ)

Date and Time: October 22, 2026, at 9:30 p.m.

Referees: Gustavo Tejera (URU), Nicolas Taran (URU) and Carlos Barreiro (URU)

Yellow Cards: Baltasar Rodríguez (EST), González Pírez (EST), Santiago Núñez (EST) and Piovi (EST)

Red Card: Baltasar Rodríguez (EST).