A pair of South American cup finalists will square off for a place in the Copa do Brasil Final on Wednesday when Flamengo host Sao Paulo at the Maracana.
Mengao, who advanced to their second successive Copa Libertadores final last week, took the opening leg of this tie against Sao Paulo 3-1.
Match preview
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A solid second half in the opening fixture of this semi-final has Flamengo well positioned to advance to their second tournament final in 2022.
Their performance in Sao Paulo in the opening leg was probably the most convincing one for them in the knockout stage of this year's competition, scoring as many goals in that game as they had managed in their previous three matches at this tournament combined.
Dorival Junior has this team in a position to capture a cup double for a fourth successive campaign, as they have yet to suffer a home defeat at this season's tournament.
Urubu have not made it to the final of this competition since 2017, and on that occasion they were beaten on penalties by Cruzeiro.
Entering this deciding match, the three-time champions of this event are unbeaten in 18 successive encounters in all competitions, defeating Sao Paulo twice over that stretch.
They have not squandered a two-goal advantage in a game since drawing Gremio 2-2 in a domestic outing last November, though they did let a 2-0 semi-final lead against Atletico Mineiro slip away at the 2014 Copa do Brasil, dropping the second leg of that tie 4-1 as they were eliminated 4-3 on aggregate.
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In the illustrious history of the Sao Paulo Football Club, the Copa do Brasil is one of the few trophies to elude them, with their best finish being the runners-up in 2000.
Whenever they compete for a title of any kind, current manager Rogerio Ceni is likely involved somehow, as the highest-scoring goalkeeper (131) of all time has guided them into the semi-finals of this competition for the first time since 2020.
Having to come from behind is nothing new for this club, especially in recent memory, as Tricolor Paulista came back to draw their last two domestic fixtures despite trailing 1-0.
They made it into the final of the Copa Sudamericana less than a week ago, defeating Atletico Goianiense 2-0 in the second leg after dropping the opening encounter 3-1, ultimately advancing 4-2 on penalties.
As unbeatable as Flamengo appear, Sao Paulo did defeat them at the Maracana in their only prior visit to Rio in this competition, winning 2-1 in 2020, advancing from that quarter-final tie 5-1 on aggregate.
Rarely have Sao Paulo drawn first blood in recent contests, but when they do, they can be a tough team to beat, going undefeated in eight successive matches in all competitions when scoring the opening goal.
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Team News
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Goals from Joao Gomes, Gabriel Barbosa and Everton, were more than enough to see Flamengo win the opening leg of this tie back in August, while Everton and Giorgian De Arrascaeta each had an assist.
Rodinei leads them with three assists so far at this tournament, Santos had a three-game shutout string at the Copa do Brasil snapped when Rodrigo Nestor scored in the 79th minute for Sao Paulo, while Pedro has two goals and two assists in the 2022 competition.
Rodrigo Caio is out with a knee injury, while Matheus Franca tallied their only goal this weekend as they drew 1-1 domestically against Goias, with Leo Pereira collecting an assist.
Luciano has four goals for Sao Paulo so far in the 2022 competition, putting him in a three-way tie for second alongside Vina and Edu and one behind German Cano of Fluminense, while Igor Vinicius has three assists and Robert Arboleda has two goals.
Giuliano Galoppo put home the winning penalty in their semi-final triumph over Goianiense at the Sudamericana last Thursday, while Patrick, who has only scored once at the Copa do Brasil this year, notched a brace to reverse that two-goal deficit less than a week ago.
Felipe Alves collected a clean sheet in that encounter, while Eder had their equalising goal this weekend in a 1-1 draw domestically versus Corinthians.
Luan and Nikao could both be out due to thigh issues, Andre Anderson has a muscle strain and Gabriel Neves is not expected back until early October because of a knee injury.
Flamengo possible starting lineup:
Santos; Luis, Pereira, Luiz, Rodinei; Gomes, Hugo; De Arrascaeta, Ribeiro, Vidal; Barbosa
Sao Paulo possible starting lineup:
Jandrei; Rafinha, Costa, Leo, Welington; Galoppo, Nestor; Vinicius, Gomes, Patrick; Calleri
We say: Flamengo 2-0 Sao Paulo (Flamengo advance 5-1 on aggregate)
Sao Paulo have shown they are a resilient group, particularly in knockout stage matches, but Flamengo seem to have an answer for everything that their opponents may throw at them, and Mengao are a lot stingier defensively compared to Goianiense, so it is hard to foresee Tricolor Paulista pulling off a victory by two or more goals.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Joel Lefevre
