Opponent in the Libertadores, Thiago Nunes sees Fluminense as the main team in Brazil alongside Palmeiras Fluminense

a Fluminense He will face an old acquaintance of the Brazilian fans in the group stage of the Libertadores. Thiago Nunes, former coach of Corinthians, Atlético PR, Gremio and Sierra, leads Sporting Cristal, Flo’s first opponent in the competition.

One week after the first meeting with Flo, which will take place next Wednesday, April 5, at the National Stadium in Lima, in Peru, at 9:30 pm in Brasilia, the Brazilian coach assesses Group D, which also includes River Plate. and The Strongest, and referred to the team led by Fernando Diniz as one of the best teams in Brazil along with Palmeiras, led by Abel Ferreira.

– Our first challenge is to be able to compete well, to be at an acceptable level to compete with very strong teams, such as River Plate, which is currently the best Argentine team, and is the leader of the Argentine Championship, a team that needs no introduction. a Fluminense And he, along with Palmeiras, are the two main clubs in Brazil at the moment. a Fluminense He has been playing qualifying and effective soccer, winning the Guanabara Cup and fighting for the Carioca Championship title. It comes from a work sequence of nearly two years, and it’s very integrated, consolidating, and I think it’s found its best shape in the last four or five years.

When assessing opponents, Thiago Nunes also commented on the difficulties of playing in the feared heights of La Paz against stronger players.

– And the strongest is always a strong opponent, playing at the height of La Paz, more than 3500 meters. A cool factor that can hardly be left out of the points. Therefore, I would say that Sporting Cristal has a very difficult mission, but we are here to change a little bit of that context, to reinvigorate the institution, the club. Put some games to play.

In recent years, Thiago Nunes has led Atlético, Corinthians, Gremio and Sierra. In Hurricane, the coach has his most winning assists: he was the champion of Sudamericana, in 2018, and the Copa do Brasil, in 2019. For Grêmio, in 2021, Tiago Nunes was the champion of Rio Grande do Sul. The coach’s last job in Brazil was in Ceará, between 2021 and 2022. He was fired after being eliminated in the Copa do Nordest for CRB, in March last year. There have been 32 matches for Fuzau.

At the end of the season, he signed with Sporting Cristal, where he had to beat Nacional (BAR) and Huracan (Argentina) to reach the group stage of the Libertadores.

Sporting Cristal reached the group stage through the Pre-Libertadores. We faced the Paraguayan team, Nacional, as well as the Argentine team Huracan. Two very strong encounters, especially when it comes to a Peruvian team, which historically does not have this characteristic of reaching the preliminary stage to the group stage. What happened to us was somewhat unprecedented. Two difficult games, which we went through in detail, and counted on us to be at such an important stage, where the Copa Libertadores begins.

– I can’t help but contextualize what Peruvian football has been like over the past 20 years. Where many suffered in this initial phase of the Libertadores. For many years, Sporting Cristal could not qualify for the Round of 16. The Peruvian team has rarely made it through the first stage.

The Brazilian Sporting Cristal coach explained that the team is under construction and that he is betting on the escape of the Peruvian team to surprise the opponents in Group D.

– We are going through a transitional moment. Some experienced players left, others arrived. We are maturing as a team. Achievements in the preliminary stage helped us gain confidence, but we now know that the characteristics of the competition are different. Although we are currently doing well in the national championship, we are the only undefeated team in the championship, we have not lost, and we know that the competitive level is different. Today, without a doubt, Sporting Cristal is a team that will fight abroad in this dispute, with all due respect, the strength we have in our ability to try to surprise these favorites in our group.

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