Mengão defeats Mirassol at Maracanã and remains firmly in the lead of the Brasileirão

Turning attention to the Brasileirão, Flamengo took to the field this Saturday (9), at Maracanã, beat Mirassol 2-1, and remained firm in the lead of the national championship. Léo Pereira and Plata scored the goals for Mengão, who now have 40 points in the national competition with one game still to play. 

Midweek, the Mais Querido will return to play at Maracanã. This time, the opponent will be Internacional, in the first leg of the Copa Libertadores Round of 16.

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The game

In the first attack of the match, less than a minute into the match, Plata crossed from the right, Mirassol's defense poorly cleared, and the ball fell to Arrascaeta, who fired home a first-time shot. The shot sailed well over the goal. Flamengo pressed hard in the opening minutes to quickly score.

With a high defense, the red-and-black team pressed Mirassol's ball out, which struggled to get the ball out, but when it did break free, it threatened Rossi's goal. In the 17th minute, Alex Sandro found Samuel Lino on the left, who cut through the defense and struck hard. The ball deflected off the path and went out for a corner.

On the next play, Mengão managed to open the scoring after numerous attempts. Samuel Lino, wide on the left, crossed perfectly for Léo Pereira to rise unmarked and head stylishly into the back of the net: 1-0. With the advantage, Mengão dictated the pace of the match, passing the ball from foot to foot and exploring the left side of the field more, with Samuel Lino's verticality. 

In the 31st minute, Emerson Royal attempted a cross from the right, but the ball deflected off the defender and nearly fooled Walter, who stretched to prevent a second goal. The next play, Pedro received the ball at the edge of the box and rolled it to the right for Plata to hit first-time. Walter, once again, dropped well to make the save. 

In the final minutes of the first half, Mirassol threatened with Chico da Costa, who controlled the ball inside the box and sent it over the goal. Aside from that scare, Flamengo was far superior, creating opportunities to score a second, and went into halftime with the advantage. 

In the second half, Mirassol came out more aggressively because they needed to make up for lost time. This gave Flamengo more space to exploit counterattacks. The red-and-black team's first substitution came before the 15th minute. Luiz Araújo came on for Pedro.

By exchanging passes in the attacking half, Mengão scored their second goal in the 22nd minute. Arrascaeta received the ball on the left side of the box and delivered a beautiful three-finger cross to the far post. Plata arrived in time to tap it into the back of the net. 

A few minutes later, Mirassol pulled one back through Gabriel, who picked up the rebound inside the box and slotted it into Rossi's corner: 2-1. Flamengo immediately responded. Samuel Lino played a one-two with Arrascaeta, got to the byline, and sent in a low cross. Plata pivoted and passed the ball to Arrascaeta, who slotted it into the corner. Walter stretched to prevent another goal. 

In the final minutes of the match, Mirassol tried one last push to equalize, but the Red-Blacks held on and left the field with another home victory. With the result, Filipe Luís's team remains top of the Brasileirão. 

Flamengo

Rossi; Emerson Royal (Varela), Leo Ortiz, Leo Pereira and Alex Sandro; Evertton Araujo, Allan and Arrascaeta (Bruno Henrique); Plata, Samuel Lino and Pedro (Luiz Araujo).
Coach: Filipe Luís.

Mirassol

Walter; Lucas Ramon, João Victor, Jemmes and Reinaldo; Neto Moura (Yago Felipe), Danielzinho (José Aldo) and Gabriel (Matheus Bianqui); Negueba (Carlos Eduardo), Chico da Costa and Edson Carioca (Alesson).
Coach: Rafael Guanaes.

Week's agenda

Rubro-Negro returns to the field next Wednesday (13) to face Internacional, at 21:30 pm, for the first leg of the round of XNUMX of the Conmebol Libertadores.

Technical sheet

Flamengo 2x1 Mirassol – Brazilian Championship | 19th Round
Location: Maracanã, RJ
Date and time: 09/08/2025 at 18:30 am
Refereeing: Paulo Cesar Zanovelli da Silva (MG), Nailton Junior de Sousa Oliveira (CE) and Celso Luiz da Silva (MG)
Yellow cards: Léo Ortiz (FLA) and João Victor (MIR)
Goals: Léo Pereira (18'1st half), Plata (22'2nd half) and Gabriel (28'2nd half).