Flamengo beats Bolívar 2-0 and takes the lead in the round of 16 of the Libertadores

This Thursday (15), Flamengo faced Bolívar in the opening match of the round of 16 of the Copa Libertadores da América. In a game played at Maracanã, the Rio de Janeiro team ended up winning by a score of 2-0, with goals from Luiz Araújo and Leo Pereira. Pedro and Gabigol left the game injured and will undergo tests to discover the severity of the injury.

First half

Flamengo completely dominated the first half of the match from the first minutes and almost opened the scoring after just two minutes of play after a corner kick with Pulgar heading in and on the rebound the Bolivian defense almost scoring an own goal.

Flamengo kept up the pressure, with other clear chances to score, this time in the 10th minute, when Arrascaeta received the ball deep and shot at the goalkeeper. On the rebound, the ball fell to Gerson who shot wide. Soon after, in the 13th minute, Gerson had another chance, but was once again stopped by the goalkeeper. Arrascaeta got to the rebound and Jesús Sagredo saved it on the goal line. In both cases, the referee had already stopped the attack, the first due to an offside call and the second due to a foul by Pedro on Gerson's rebound.

The red-black goal came in the 29th minute. After an excellent play that started with Nico de la Cruz finding Arrascaeta who in a quick play found Pedro and who with class launched Luiz Araújo alone who calmly, firmly hit the corner to open the scoring.

Pedro's perfect pass led to Luiz Araújo's opener for @Flamengo_en! #EternalGlory | #FLAxBOL pic.twitter.com/0NW6dPYvx4

— CONMEBOL Libertadores (@TheLibertadores) August 16, 2024

_{Goal scored by Luiz Araújo in the first half (Reproduction/X/@TheLibertadores)}

Flamengo continued to press throughout the rest of the first half, but were unsuccessful in extending their lead. As if that were not enough, the Brazilian team would also see their top scorer of the season, number 9 Pedro, leave the field injured with a hamstring injury, giving way to Gabigol.

Second half

The second half started in a more physical way, with tough tackles from both teams and Flamengo playing some not-so-pretty football, but they still kept pressing in search of a second goal. The first big chance only came after 10 minutes, after a cross into the area, Arrascaeta headed the ball dangerously and it ended up deflecting, going out for a corner.

Flamengo threatened again in the 30th minute, when Ayrton Lucas made a perfect three-finger cross looking for striker Carlinhos, who had come on in the second half. The number 12 tried to head the ball, but goalkeeper Lampe made another great save and once again prevented Flamengo from scoring.

The red-and-black team kept trying, without much tactics, which left holes in the defense. In a counterattack opportunity, Bolívar arrived quickly, took advantage of Flamengo's defensive errors and almost tied the game with a header from Yomar. The ball hit the crossbar and went out over the goal line.

As the match was drawing to a close, in the 44th minute, after an unpretentious move, Flamengo managed to win another corner kick in the match, the twelfth. Luiz Araújo, who was voted man of the match, crossed perfectly, Léo Pereiro rose higher than Bolívar's defense and managed to beat goalkeeper Lampe, extending the score at Maracanã.

Léo Pereira doubled the lead for @Flamengo_en! #EternalGlory | #FLAxBOL pic.twitter.com/vi2Ppp1WGJ

— CONMEBOL Libertadores (@TheLibertadores) August 16, 2024

_{Goal scored by Leo Pereira in the second half (Reproduction/X/@TheLibertadores)}

A few minutes later, in a new attempt to attack, Gabigol tries to put the ball in front of the marker, and while running, the number 99 feels pain in the back of his thigh, just like Pedro in the first half, and had to leave the match. As Tite had already stopped the game three times, Flamengo could not make another substitution and had to finish the match with 10 players on the field.

With the 2-0 victory, the red-black team can lose by up to one goal at the altitude of La Paz and still secure a place in the quarterfinals of the competition. The return game is scheduled for next Thursday (22), also at 9:30 pm, Brasília time. Before that, Flamengo will play the classic against Botafogo on Sunday (18).

Featured Photo: Pedro and Luiz Araújo celebrating the first goal of the match (Reproduction/X/@Libertadores)