Fluminense debuted in the 2023 edition of the Copa Libertadores with a 3-1 victory over Sporting Cristal (Peru), on Wednesday night (5) at the Nacional stadium in Lima. With the result, Tricolor das Laranjeiras shares the leadership of Group D with The Strongest (Bolivia), who beat River Plate (Argentina) by 3 to 1.
??⚽ What a turn, #flow!
✌️? With 2️⃣ goals from top scorer Germán Cano, the @FluminenseFC won the @ClubSCristal 3-1 for the first round of CONMEBOL Group D #Liberators . #GloriaEterna pic.twitter.com/wIUsbDcDia
— CONMEBOL Libertadores (@LibertadoresBR) April 6, 2023
The team led by coach Fernando Diniz started the match better. But, after a failure in midfielder Felipe Melo, Yotún left at speed and found Castillo, who played for Grimaldo, who did not forgive in the 17th minute of the first half.
However, Fluminense has Cano, who showed his well-known nose for goal to equalize the score in the 34th minute. The Colombian Arias took a corner kick and Nino headed the crossbar. The Argentine striker anticipated the defense and scored first to beat goalkeeper Solís.
With the score equal, the Laranjeiras team took command of the actions for good and, after trying so hard, they scored the second in a bid, at 13 minutes of the final stage, in which they had the category of Marcelo. The winger, who made his debut for the team from Rio, hit a three-finger pass to Arias, who invaded the area and crossed for Cano to score again. In the 35th minute, Fluminense gave the final numbers to the confrontation with a headed goal by defender Vitor Mendes.
Tricolor’s next match in Libertadores will be on April 18, a Tuesday, against The Strongest at the Maracanã stadium.
Flamengo stumbles at altitude
Who did not have a good debut in the competition was Flamengo. The current holder of the Libertadores title was beaten 2-1 by Aucas (Ecuador) at the Gonzalo Pozo Ripalda Stadium, located at 2,850 meters above sea level in the city of Quito. The setback left the Gávea team in second place in Group A without any points.
???? Historic victory in Ecuador!
? In his first game for CONMEBOL #LiberatorsO @Aucas45 turned over the @Flamengo won 2-1 and ended the 13-game unbeaten run of the defending champions. #GloriaEterna pic.twitter.com/n4l6fYN4U1
— CONMEBOL Libertadores (@LibertadoresBR) April 5, 2023
Acting with an alternative formation, the Rubro-Negro did not have a good performance. However, even without controlling the actions at any time during the match, the team managed to open the scoring in the 38th minute of the first half, when Matheus França started down the left midfielder, got rid of the marking of two opponents and hit Galíndez on the way out to score a goal. nice goal.
But Aucas kept pressing. And, after trying so hard, he reached equality at 12 of the final stage thanks to a kick from the edge of the area by Eryc Castillo. At 20, shirt number 31 again beat Santos, but the goal was annulled by the referee, with the help of VAR (video referee), due to a foul at the beginning of the play.
Realizing the difficulties of his team, Portuguese coach Vítor Pereira put some of his starters on the field (Pedro, Gerson, Ayrton Lucas and Everton Cebolinha), but Aucas continued to rule the match. And the home team’s greatest impetus to attack was rewarded in the 39th minute with a goal by Ordoñez.
Flamengo will have the opportunity to seek its first victory in the competition on April 19, a Wednesday, at the Maracanã stadium against Ñublense (Chile).
defeat of Palmeiras
Another team to lose points in altitude was Palmeiras, which debuted with a 3-1 defeat to Bolívar (Bolivia) at the Hernando Siles Stadium, located at 3,625 meters in the city of La Paz.
?? Victory of @Bolivar_Oficial!
??⚽?? At the altitude of La Paz, the Bolivian team won the @Palmeiras turnaround and added his first 3️⃣ points in CONMEBOL Group C #Liberators.#GloriaEterna pic.twitter.com/9NH0rpgIXx
— CONMEBOL Libertadores (@LibertadoresBR) April 6, 2023
Argentine Flaco López opened the scoring for Verdão with a beautiful kick. But the home team secured the victory with goals from Uzeda, Bejarano and Hervías. After this result, Palmeiras occupies the bottom of Group C without any points. Verdão returns to play for the competition on April 20, a Thursday, when it receives Cerro Porteño (Paraguay).
