Analysis: planning does not guarantee performance, and Tite’s Flamengo is experiencing a moment of instability | Flamengo

The discussion about the absence of Flamengo’s starters in the Libertadores game gained a new chapter after the 2-0 defeat to Botafogo, this Sunday, in the Brasileirão. With performance well below after the rest, Rubro-Negro was very little creative, making their limited offensive repertoire evident and Tite is experiencing the (first) moment of instability.

Flamengo x Botafogo – Best Moments

Worth a consideration: Flamengo he did not save against Bolívar to be complete against Botafogo. The technical committee’s planning to start dosing the minutes of some athletes is intended to reap rewards in the medium/long term. But even so, given this, a better performance was expected from a rested team. Planning does not guarantee income, but it increases expectations.

– Football has very high demands. It’s not preservation, because it seems like it’s something you choose to do, and we don’t choose – Tite said at a press conference.

Five athletes didn’t even travel to the altitude of La Paz and were on the field on the sunny Sunday morning in Rio: Varela, Ayrton Lucas, Pulgar, Arrascaeta and Pedro. Of the quintet, the best on the field was Pulgar, who left the field with a trauma to his left ankle. The full-backs had standard performances, while Pedro and, above all, Arrascaeta were absent.

The Uruguayan stayed on the field for 70 minutes before asking to leave due to discomfort in the hamstring of his right thigh. Absent in the Libertadores, Arrascaeta played the full match against Palmeiras after not being used against São Paulo.

Now let’s talk about the game. The feeling of dominance in the first half was due to possession of the ball and the quick recovery with the second ball. Flamengo was superior until halfway through the first stage, when they managed to stand out in midfield as they controlled the marking and made it difficult for Botafogo to organize the plays.

Botafogo even risked some counterattacks, but the defense was well compacted – especially Fabrício Bruno who blocked two shots. The dominance and control, however, were not translated into effectiveness and Flamengo went into the break with eight shots. None in goal.

And it remained that way in the second half. The players lacked strength. Even approaching the area and creating some plays, Flamengo continued to fail in decision-making in the last third of the field. The physical issue, under more than 30ºC in Rio, also weighed on Rubro-Negro, who began to suffer with marking after Pulgar left at half-time.

Allan tried to occupy the middle, but the marking didn’t fit. Meanwhile, Botafogo was gaining confidence and finding the passes to create plays. The goal is the result of Flamengo’s defensive disintegration. Luiz Henrique scored after a rehearsed play from a corner kick. The player was free to shoot. No red-black player on the rebound.

Flamengo abused aerial balls, something that has been common and, especially, when the opponent manages to neutralize the creation and when the stars have uninspired days. The classic reinforced a symptom of recent performances: lack of creativity, lack of repertoire in the last pass and little effectiveness in finishing.

It’s been two weeks since the planning gained space in the red and black news. From then on, only the victory against the São Paulo – a game that he controlled, but suffered a lot of ending -, draw with Palmeiras without having maximum strength, the end of the unbeaten run with the defeat to Bolívar with a very modified team and, finally, the defeat in the classic this Sunday.

If before the defense was solid and the starting lineup only conceded a goal in the Libertadores debut, now we can point out the Achilles heel: aerial balls. Of the seven goals conceded by Tite, three were like this. Goals from Luiz Fernando (Atlético-GO), Ferreirinha (São Paulo) and Chico (Bolívar). This Sunday it wasn’t an area ball, but a dead ball: Luiz Henrique (Botafogo) scored from a corner kick.

Tite’s Flamengo concedes four of its seven goals this year from aerial or set pieces

It is in the midst of a sequence of draws and two defeats – the worst since he arrived – that Tite experiences the first moment of instability at the club. Even before the ball rolled at Maracanã, when the big screen announced the lineup, the coach was the target of criticism. The situation continued with the defeat, and the coaching staff even heard some boos at the end of the game.

Tite has already stated that at times it is necessary to take a step back to simplify and rediscover the path to victory. The problem is that the calendar requires that the route be recalculated quickly and, on Wednesday, Flamengo starts another competition. At Maracanã, Rubro-Negro faces Amazonas, in the Copa do Brasil.

“I hate losing to these guys”, says Arthur | The Voice of the Fan

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