Flamengo coach Filipe Luis said that the Brazilian side is preparing for more than just a football match when Sunday is opposite Bayern Munich in the Club World Cup – it chases a dream that could again define the career of his players and reform the international status of the club.
«For Europeans, winning this tournament cannot change their lives,» Luis said reporters on Saturday prior to the collision at the Hard Rock Stadium. «But it would be for us.»
The club goes into the game as underdog against the six times European champions.
But Luis believes that the identity of Flamengo, together with the fierce competitive spirit that has been forged in the high pressure football culture of Brazil, gives it a real chance.
«Brazilian players are extremely competitive,» he said. «They grow up with intense external pressure – from fans, from the media. That is a mental resilience that makes a difference in games like this.»
Bayern -coach Vincent Kompany agreed that the passion of Brazilians for football was important.
«It is also an advantage of having a country of 220 million people crazy about football. We don’t have that anywhere in Europe,» he said.
Read also | What the CWC tells us about the revival of the Brazilian competition football
«And it’s hard to say who the favorites are between two teams who have never played against each other.»
Luis, a former defender of Atletico Madrid and Chelsea, now in his first major tournament as head coach, praised Bayern’s tactical discipline and intense urgently.
But he insisted that Flamengo would not give up their playing style in the face of the challenge.
«Flamengo has a way of playing, a DNA, and we don’t give up,» he said. «This is how Flamengo plays – with the ball, with courage. We are proud of that.»
Luis warned that Flamengo can not only rely on speed to break Bayern’s lines. «Their defenders are used to control the space,» he said. «We have to combine intensity with possession. You don’t beat Bayern by just running behind.»
For Flamengo, who won the Intercontinental Cup against Liverpool in 1981, the chance to compete at this stage is a test on neutral soil against a European powerhouse.
«This debate about whether Flamengo could play the Premier League or Champions League comes up a lot. But Flamengo will never play it – we play the Club World Cup. It is a very different context,» he explained.
“We don’t play in their stadium, they don’t play with us. Again, pitch – it’s all different. I avoid comparisons that lead nowhere. Many of our players have Champions League experience. Five were in the last team of Brazil. We also have Uruguay, Ecuador and more.
«With all due respect, I am convinced that we can be a match for Bayern.»
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():focal(699x268:701x270)/Scarlett-Johansson-Jonathan-Bailey-1-062325-96cdb18afd8a4877bc7e53fbc6f12b6b.jpg?w=238&resize=238,178&ssl=1 "Tenemos que normalizarnos para ser cariñosos con nuestros amigos, por eso")
