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| Copa Libertadores 1981 |
Please also see my All-Time World Cup Team Index.
Santos, Flamengo, Sao Paulo, Corithians, Botafogo
Vasco Da Gama, Palmeiras, Internacional
Fluminense, Gremio, Cruzeiro, Atlético Mineiro, Bahia.
This is my selection of a 25 member all-time team for the club. The number 25 was chosen because it is the official squad size for the Champions' League.
Flamengo is the most popular team in Brazil, with over 39.1 million supporters as of 2010,and was voted by FIFA as one of the most successful football clubs of the 20th century. It is also one of Brazil's richest football clubs in terms of revenue. Led by Zico, they won the Copa Libertadores and the Intercontinental Cup in 1981. The side is considered one of the greatest club sides in South American history.
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| 2019 Copa Libertadores |
Team
GK: Raul Plassman (Brazil)
Raul was the starting keeper for the great Flamengo team of the 1980's. He played for them between 1978 and 1983, winning the Copa Libertadores and Intercontinental Cup in 1981. His longest stint was with Cruzeiro, where he spent the prime of his career and won the Copa Libertadores in 1976. He was capped 17 times, but never went to the WC Finals.
GK: Sinforiano García (Paraguay)
Sinforiano García started his career in 1944, playing for Atlético Corrales, moving in 1945 to Cerro Porteño, leaving this club in 1948. He joined Brazilian club Flamengo in 1949, after scouts observed him during the 1949 South American Championship. Sinforiano García played 276 games and and was crucial for the club's 1953, 1954 and 1955 Campeonato Carioca titles. He was capped 20 times.
GK: Ze Carlos (Brazil)
From1983 to 2000, Ze Carlos played for many clubs in Brazil and Portugal. The best moment in his career came when he played for Flamengo, in the late eighties, when he won one Brazilian championship in 1987 and one Rio de Janeiro state championship in 1986. For the national team, he was usually the second goalkeeper after Taffarel. He went to the 1990 World Cup Finals.
RB: Leandro (Brazil)
Leandro was one of the best rightbacks in the 1980's and one of Brazil's best ever. He earned 31 caps for Brazil. He was a part of the great 1982 World Cup team in Spain. At the club level, he spent his entire career playing for Flamengo. Along with Zico and Junior, he helped them to win the Copa Libertadores and Intercontinental Cup in 1981. The team was considered one of the greatest Brazilian club side ever assembled.
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| Leandro |
Regarded as one of the best full-backs of his generation, Jorginho started with local side América Football Club, moving after just one season to Flamengo. In 1989, he joined Bayer Leverkusen. He signed with Bayern Munich in 1992–93. Capped 64 times for Brazil, scoring three goals. He played at both the 1990 and the 1994 World Cups. In the latter edition, he was named in the All-Star squad.
CB: Domingos da Guia (Brazil)
Domingos da Guia is considered Brazil's greatest defender. He was the star defender of the 1940's who was among the first skilled defender ever to play the game. He was widely considered one of greatest ever defender to emerge from Brazil. He played for several clubs, but notably with Flamengo and Corinthians, and aboard with Boca Juniors. He had 30 caps. He was a star at the 1938 World Cup Finals in France. His son is Ademir da Guia.
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| Domingos da Guia |
Carlos Mozer started his career with Flamengo in 1980. In Europe, he played for Benfica on two different spells and went to play with Marseille in between them. With Marseille, he reached the 1990-1991 European Cup Final. He later played in Japan at the end of his career. At the international level, he was capped 32 times between 1983 and 1994. He went to the 1990 World Cup Finals in Italy with Brazil.
CB: Francisco Reyes (Paraguay)
Francisco Reyes started his career playing for Olimpia, winning the Primera División Paraguaya in 1962 and in 1965. Reyes joined Brazilian club Flamengo in 1967, helped the club to win the Campeonato Carioca in 1972, and left at the end of 1973. He retired while defending Olimpia, winning the Paraguayan League in his last season, in 1975. He was capped 13 times.
CB: Rondinelli (Brazil)
Rondinelli started his career playing for Flamengo, where he played 394 matches from 1974 to 1981. In 1978, he won the Placar's Campeonato Brasileiro Série A Bola de Prata award. After Flamengo, he played several clubs in Brazil. He was capped three times, but did not play against international teams.
LB: Junior (Brazil)
Junior was one of the greatest leftback in Brazil's history. He was the starting leftback for Brazil in 1982 World Cup Finals. He was also a part of the great Flamengo team of the 1980's winning the 1981 Copa Libertadores and 1981 Intercontinental Cup. With 857 matches, he is the player with most appearances for Flamengo. In 1984, he joined Torino in Italy. He played 70 times for Brazil. He also went to the World Cup Finals in 1982 and 1986.
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| Junior |
From 1977 to 1987, Andrade played for Flamengo, taking part in the club's Golden Age and winning the 1981 Copa Libertadores and the Intercontinental Cup. With 569 matches for Flamengo, Andrade has the 5th most appearances for the club. Later, he moved to AS Roma and then Vasco da Gama. Andrade and Zinho are the only Brazilian players who have won the National League 5 times. Capped 11 times.
CM: Adílio (Brazil)
Adilio won almost everything for Flamengo during the Golden Age of the club, whom he played between 1975 and 1987. Adílio is the third player with most appearances for the club. He was one of the goal scorers against Liverpool during the Intercontinental Cup against Liverpool in 1981. He was capped twice between 1979 and 1982.
CM: Gerson (Brazil)
Gerson was the central midfielder for Brazil in the 1970 World Cup Finals. He is considered one of Brazil's best ever passers. He played on the legendary Botafogo's team of in the 1960's with Garrincha. While at the club, he played with Didi and became his understudy, in which he would also inherit the position on the Seleção. He also played Flamengo, São Paulo and Fluminense. For Brazil, he had over 70 caps. He also went to the World Cup in 1966.
AM: Dejan Petković (Serbia/Yugoslavia)
After leaving Red Star Belgrade in 1995, Petkovic's career in Europe did not succeed. In 1997, he joined Vitória in Brazil. He was one of the few Europeans to play and succeed in the Brazilian league. He was considered one of the best players in Brazil during his days there. Between 2000 and 2011, he played for 7 Brazilian clubs. He was a hero for three Rio clubs. His international career, however, was limited to 7 caps.
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| Dejan Petković |
Dequinha played with Atlético de Mossoró, Potiguar de Mossoró, ABC-RN and América-PE. In 1950, he signed with Flamengo. He was a key player during Flamengo's 1953-54-55 Rio State Championships campaigns. He played the 1954 World Cup and remained in the national team for another two years. In 1960 he transferred to Campo Grande-RJ where he retired two years later.
LW/AM: Zico (Brazil)
Zico was the best player in the world during the early 1980's. He came eighth in the FIFA Player of the Century grand jury vote. He went to three World Cup Finals, but probably best remembered for the 1982 tournament, which Brazil fielded a wonderful team. He won the Intercontinental Cup in 1981 with Flamengo, a team that was considered among the greatest club side ever. He later played with Udinese for 2 seasons, where he was Serie A Player of the Year n 1984.
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| Zico |
Zinho played club football in Brazil with Clube de Regatas do Flamengo, Sociedade Esportiva Palmeiras, Grêmio Foot-Ball Porto Alegrense, Cruzeiro Esporte Clube and Nova Iguaçu Futebol Clube. He also had spells abroad with Yokohama Flügels and Miami FC. He was capped 57 times. He played in every game at 1994 World Cup Finals in USA as Brazil won their fourth World Cup.
FW/AM: Zizinho (Brazil)
Zizinho was Pele's idol. He was considered the greatest Brazilian player before the 1960's. He was the star of the ill-fated World Cup Finals in 1950 playing alongside Jair and Ademir. For his club career, he played for Flamengo, Bangu, São Paulo FC, Audax Italiano of Chile among others teams. With Flamengo, he won state championships in 1942, 1943 and 1944. He turned down a chance to play in the 1958 World Cup Finals.
FW: Leônidas da Silva (Brazil)
Leônidas da Silva was known as "Black Diamond" and considered the greatest Brazilian footballer before the war. He was credited to be the inventor of "Bicycle Kick". He played in two World Cup Finals: 1934 and 1938. He was the top scorer at the tournament in 1938. At the club level, he played for a number of clubs in Brazil and Penarol in Uruguay. His longest spells were with Vasco Da Gama and Sao Paulo.
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| Leonidas and Zizinho |
Jair was a member of the great offensive trio for Brazil at the World Cup in 1950. The other two were Zizinho and Ademir. He played for Flamengo and Vasco da Gama before the World Cup in 1950. After the World Cup Finals, he played mainly for clubs in Sao Paulo. For the national team, he only made two cameo appearances two years after the ill-fated World Cup Finals.
FW/AM: Carlinhos (Brazil)
Known as "The Violin", Carlinhos was one of the few players to receive the Belfort Duarte Trophy ("fair play award") from the Brazilian Football Confederation. The award is given to the players who have never received a red card. He spent his entire career with Flamengo, playing over 500 games. After retirement, he also coached for the team, making him one of the most important personal ever for the club.
FW: Veve (Brazil)
Veve was one of Flamengo's greatest attackers. He played for them between 1941 and 1948, won Campeonato Carioca de Futebol three times; 1942, 1943 and 1944. He was capped once for the Seleção in a match against Colombia in during the South American Championship in 1945. He was also on the 1946 team, but did not play.
FW: Dida (Brazil)
Dida is among the greatest players in Flamengo's history. He was the first great scorer of Maracanã. His delightful performances at the pitch made him an idol of idols as Zico, Júnior and Carlos Alberto. He led Flamengo to consecutive Carioca championships in 1954 and 1955. Dida is the 2nd high scorer in Flamengo's history with 244 goals. He was capped 6 times and went to the WC Finals in 1958.
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| Dida |
Nunes started his career with Flamengo, but did not play for the first team. He became a star with Santa Cruz, Fluminense and Mexico's CF Monterrey. In 1980, he returned to Flamengo. He was a part of Flamengo's Golden Age and became one of the most important player of that generation. He was capped 6 times for the Seleção. He missed the 1978 World Cup Finals due to an injury.
ST Romario (Brazil)
Romario helped the Seleção to win the 1994 World Cup, receiving the Golden Ball as the player of the tournament. He was named World Player of the Year the same year. However, he missed the 1998 World Cup Finals because of an injury and he was a bench player at the 1990 World Cup. He is one of very few strikers to surpass the mark of 1,000 goals. He was best remembered for his stint with Barcelona, playing for Johan Cruyff's Dream Team.
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| Romario |
Honorable Mention
Jordan da Costa, Joel, Rubens, Bebeto, Doval, Renato Gaucho, Aldair, Henrique Frade, Biguá, Tita, Sylvio Pirillo, Evaristo de Macedo, Gabriel Barbosa, Carlos Volante, Cantarele.
Squad Explanation
-- The three greatest players from Flamengo are probably Leônidas da Silva, Zizinho, Zico and Domingos da Guia. They were the first players selected when I started my research. Then, I added Jair, Junior and Leandro onto the team withoiut much consideration. They were also icons at the club.
-- The team that won Copa Libertadores and the Intercontinental Cup in 1981 is considered one of the greatest club side in history. Their destruction of Liverpool in 1981 remained one of the best performance by a South American side in the tournaments. Zico, Junior, Leandro, Raul Plassman, Nunes, Adilio, Carlos Mozer and Andrade were a part of that team. Rondinelli left the team in 1981, but I also took him.
-- Biguá was more associated with the club than Jorginho. He had a long history with the club. However, I took Jorginho because I did not really know Biguá.
-- European players seldom made an impact in South America.
Dejan Petković is an extreme rare case. If he is Brazilian, I would have considered him too, but his nationality also helped his case. I did factor that into his consideration.
-- I did not see Argentine midfielder Carlos Volante's name anywhere, but the defensive midfielder position in Brazil is named "volante" after him. He must have done well with Flamengo, his only club in Brazil.
-- I rewarded Carlinhos a spot because of his sportmenship and his contributions to the club.
-- Bebeto is a famous player and he was homegrown. He enjoyed successful careers with the club and elsewhere, but I selected players who had done more for the club. Gerson's situation was similar with Bebeto. He was among the greatest Brazilian players. His club career, however, was defined by his years with Botafogo. I have question marks over his inclusion to the Final 25. However, unlike Bebeto, Gerson was a midfielder. Bebeto has to go against other good forwards. For example, Nunes was on the great 1981 team; Veve scored many goals; Carlinhos played his entire career with Flamengo. I did not even have space for Tita. So I have to drop Bebeto.
-- People might be surprised to see Romario on this all-time team. He spent 5 years here. He was actually the 5th highest scorer in Flamengo's history. I admitted that selecting him over Bebeto is a controversial decision.
-- Zizinho does not need many introduction. His club career was defined here.
-- Jair da Rosa Pinto only played two seasons with the club. He played with Zizinho. He had 62 goals in 87 games. He played a memorial game against Arsenal from England. Why I took him? He certainly had not done as much as Renato Gaucho, Henrique Frade, Tita or Bebeto had done for the club. For sentimental reason, I wanted to combine Zizinho with him again(which might not be a good reason).
-- Leônidas da Silva was one of the first Black players to play for the club. He is also among the greatest Brazilian players before the emerge of Pele.
-- I don't have space for Renato Gaucho, Rubens, Henrique Frade, Biguá, Tita, Sylvio Pirillo and Evaristo de Macedo.
-- In 2019, Flamengo became the first club since Pele's Santos in 1962 to win their state championship (2019 Campeonato Carioca), Campeonato Brasileiro, and Copa Libertadores in the same season. I do not know much about that team, but I added Gabriel Barbosa to honorable mention.
Formation
-- I rewarded Carlinhos a spot because of his sportmenship and his contributions to the club.
-- Bebeto is a famous player and he was homegrown. He enjoyed successful careers with the club and elsewhere, but I selected players who had done more for the club. Gerson's situation was similar with Bebeto. He was among the greatest Brazilian players. His club career, however, was defined by his years with Botafogo. I have question marks over his inclusion to the Final 25. However, unlike Bebeto, Gerson was a midfielder. Bebeto has to go against other good forwards. For example, Nunes was on the great 1981 team; Veve scored many goals; Carlinhos played his entire career with Flamengo. I did not even have space for Tita. So I have to drop Bebeto.
-- People might be surprised to see Romario on this all-time team. He spent 5 years here. He was actually the 5th highest scorer in Flamengo's history. I admitted that selecting him over Bebeto is a controversial decision.
-- Zizinho does not need many introduction. His club career was defined here.
-- Jair da Rosa Pinto only played two seasons with the club. He played with Zizinho. He had 62 goals in 87 games. He played a memorial game against Arsenal from England. Why I took him? He certainly had not done as much as Renato Gaucho, Henrique Frade, Tita or Bebeto had done for the club. For sentimental reason, I wanted to combine Zizinho with him again(which might not be a good reason).
-- Leônidas da Silva was one of the first Black players to play for the club. He is also among the greatest Brazilian players before the emerge of Pele.
-- I don't have space for Renato Gaucho, Rubens, Henrique Frade, Biguá, Tita, Sylvio Pirillo and Evaristo de Macedo.
-- In 2019, Flamengo became the first club since Pele's Santos in 1962 to win their state championship (2019 Campeonato Carioca), Campeonato Brasileiro, and Copa Libertadores in the same season. I do not know much about that team, but I added Gabriel Barbosa to honorable mention.
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| Against Liverpool at the Intercontinental Cup,1981. |
