The first note of the special envoy of the newspaper Lanceto cover the duel once morest Independiente del Valle in Ecuador for the first leg of the South American Cup Winners’ Cup 2023 this Tuesday (7:30 p.m., at the Banco Guayaquil stadium) emphasizes a factor that the clubs and Selection of that country fear: the height of the capital of Ecuador.
It says the information of Lance: “The red and black delegation has been on Ecuadorian soil since Sunday night and has already carried out the only activity in Quito. Coach Vítor Pereira’s Flamengo tries to get used to the 2,800-meter altitude in the city (Quito)”.
Filipe Luís: We are going to have to do something very special to stop Independiente del Valle
Independiente del Valle and Flamengo will once once more star in the final of the South American Cup Winners’ Cup as in 2020, when the Rio de Janeiro team won the trophy with a 5-2 global win at the Maracanã stadium. History will repeat itself as it is: the Ecuadorians will host the first leg this Tuesday in their stronghold of Chillo Jijón, as monarchs of the Copa Sudamericana once morest the so-called ‘Mengão’ as owner of the Libertadores.
Flamengo suffers but obtains third place in the Club World Cup
heavy casualties
But the geographical aspect is not left aside for the cariocas. “The effect of altitude on the players is a concern of the coaching staff. Flamengo has been suffering from physical problems in recent weeks, with Gerson and Marinho becoming casualties at the last minute,” he reports. Lance.
It is added that “the absence of Joker is precisely the coach’s main challenge for the match. Arturo Vidal is the natural substitute, but, in his first test, Vítor Pereira had formed a midfield with the two players mentioned, as well as Thiago Maia and Arrascaeta. If you opt for a sector with greater marking power, the alternative is to keep Everton Ribeiro on the bench due to the entry of Erick Pulgar”.
Also added are the casualties due to physical discomfort of the central Léo Pereira (starting), the winger Filipe Luís (alternates the position with Ayrton), the winger Marinho (substitute) and the substitute goalkeeper Hugo. The attacker Bruno Henrique, injured for a long time, did not travel to Ecuador either.
What Anselmi says
Flamengo “today is the club with the highest hierarchy on the continent,” estimated the Argentine Martín Anselmi, strategist for the Black and Blues.
He added that “here we have to try to make the difference. We playing at home, on our pitch, with our people, it’s the game we have to play and then go to the Maracaná to be ourselves, never to give up”. However, Flamengo is by no means an accessible rival. “I like the kill-kill because in the end I think it has a challenge,” Anselmi said.
Independiente has practically not played officially since October, when it beat Brazilian Sao Paulo 2-0 in the single final for the 2022 Copa Sudamericana and closed its participation in the annual national championship, placing third with 56 points in 30 games. Less than two weeks ago, they faced Aucas, the current local monarch, from Quito, whom they thrashed 3-0 in the final of the Ecuador Super Cup.
This is how Flamengo is doing
On the other hand, Flamengo has had an intense high-level activity following beating Athletico Paranaense 1-0 in the Libertadores final, also in October. He suffered a hard setback when he came third in the recent Club World Cup in Morocco 2023, when it was discounted that he would play the final with Real Madrid, but fell in the semifinals 3-2 with Al Hilal from Saudi Arabia. In this tournament he then achieved a lackluster third place by defeating Egyptian Al Ahly 4-2. Before that, they also suffered another setback, this time in the Brazilian Super Cup once morest Palmeiras, with whom they lost 4-3.
The return of the South American Cup Winners’ Cup is scheduled for next February 28 in Rio de Janeiro. In the event of a tie in points and goal difference, there will be a 30-minute extension and if the situation persists, it will go to the definition by kicks from the penalty mark.
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