Author: AmritSantlani
Copa Libertadores holders Flamengo sacked their coach Vitor Pereira on Tuesday after the Brazilian club lost all four of their titles in the current campaign. Pereira had only taken over at Flamengo in January, but the Portuguese coach’s time with the Brazilian side was not successful.
The decision to sack Pereira was confirmed by the club on its social networks, two days after Flamengo lost 4-1 to arch-rivals Fluminense in the final of the Campeonato Carioca. Earlier in the day, Vitor had guided his team to a 2-0 win in the first leg, but a stunning collapse in the second leg allowed Fluminense to get their hands on the coveted trophy.
One of the main factors in Fluminense’s victory was 34-year-old Marcelo, a former Real Madrid left-back, who played as a midfielder and opened the scoring for his team in the 4-1 win.
It was Marcelo’s first goal for his boyhood club, where he first came to prominence as a teenager in 2005. The Brazilian hit the net in the 30th minute with a shot from the edge of the box. German Cano scored twice before Alexandre made it 4-0, while Ayrton Lucas added a consolation for Flamengo.
Vitor Pereira, who had previously coached Porto and Fenerbahce, got off to a terrible start in Flamengo’s Copa Libertadores title defense, losing 2-1 to newcomers Aucas.
The Brazilian club decided to pull the trigger after Pereira failed to prevent Flamengo’s exit from the Brazilian Super Cup, the Club World Cup, the Recopa Sudamericana and the defeat to Fluminense.
According to reports in the Brazilian media, Flamengo are looking to bring back former coach Jorge Jesus, who is currently at Fenerbahce. The Portuguese helped the Brazilian side win the Copa Libertadores and the Campeonato Brasileiro title in 2019, and is set to become a free agent after the end of the current campaign in Turkey.