Carrascal leads the rout and Flamengo sticks to Palmeiras in the Brasileirão

Rubro-Negro reached 45 points, against 48 for Palmeiras, and also played one less game. The pending commitment is precisely against Mirassol, for the first round, and still needs to be rescheduled.

More than the score, the match had Jorge Carrascal as one of the main protagonists. The Colombian opened the scoring and appeared at different moments in Flamengo's offensive build-up, in a performance that also reinforced the options available to coach Leonardo Jardim in a decisive phase of the season.

Carrascal participates in the construction of four goals

Carrascal began to show signs that he would have a standout night even before Flamengo opened the scoring. Early on, the midfielder appeared in the area and hit the crossbar after Varela's cross.

At 21 minutes, the Colombian scored. Luiz Araújo crossed, goalkeeper Walter partially cleared it, Plata had the surplus and passed it to Carrascal. The midfielder dominated, went through the marking and finished to put Flamengo in front.

In the second half, his participation continued. Pedro found Carrascal, who served Luiz Araújo for the second goal. The striker cut the score and extended it to 2-0.

Shortly afterwards, Carrascal launched Ayrton Lucas on the left. The full-back reached the baseline and crossed for Pedro to score the third. In this move, therefore, the Colombian participated in the construction, although the assistance was from Ayrton Lucas.

At 20 minutes of the final stage, Carrascal appeared again in a decisive way. In a counterattack, he received the ball on the right and sent Pedro in, who went through the marking and scored the fourth red-black goal.

Pedro scores twice and reaches 14 goals

Pedro also left the field in evidence. The center forward scored twice and reached 14 goals in the Brasileirão, equaling Viveros, from Athletico-PR, in the competition's artillery leadership.

Samuel Lino completed the rout in the 28th minute of the second half, after receiving a pass from Arrascaeta. João Victor scored for Mirassol from a corner kick.

Flamengo's five goals were scored by Carrascal, Luiz Araújo, Pedro, twice, and Samuel Lino.

Leonardo Jardim changed six players in the team

The performance also drew attention due to the number of changes promoted by Leonardo Jardim in relation to the team that had started the 1-1 draw with Cruzeiro, in the Libertadores.

There were six changes: Danilo replaced Léo Ortiz, Varela replaced Emerson Royal, Lucas Paquetá took Jorginho's place, Carrascal started in the space normally used by Arrascaeta, Luiz Araújo appeared in the offensive sector and Pedro was chosen to command the attack.

Even with the modified formation, Flamengo managed to control much of the match. The team put pressure on Mirassol's ball during the first half and found even more space after the break, when the home team advanced in search of a draw.

With the advantage built, Jardim still used players like Jorginho, Arrascaeta and Samuel Lino throughout the second stage. The coach himself highlighted after the match the need to have a group with alternatives, given injuries, physical exhaustion and the sequence of commitments.

Flamengo is three points behind Palmeiras

The defeat had a direct effect on the dispute for the top of the Brasileirão. Flamengo occupies second place, with 45 points, while Palmeiras leads with 48. As they have one game in hand, the Rio club depends on their own results to overtake their rival.

Leonardo Jardim avoided, however, turning the result into a reason for euphoria. The Portuguese highlighted the evolution shown in recent weeks and linked the improvement to the longer period of work with the squad. At the same time, he asked for balance in assessing the team's current situation.

Flamengo now turns its attention to the Libertadores. On Wednesday (19), they host Cruzeiro at Maracanã for the second leg of the round of 16. The first leg, at Mineirão, ended in a 1-1 draw.

After the continental commitment, Flamengo and Cruzeiro will face each other again on Saturday, this time for the Brazilian Championship, at Mineirão.

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