The Brazilian Serie A is in the home stretch, but the title race is still wide open. Red Bull Bragantino still have a shot at winning the Serie A title.
RB Bragantino are fourth ahead of their Friday kick-off against Flamengo. A win would take them level with first-place Palmeiras.
Flamengo are also in the title mix, although they will begin Friday five points off Palmeiras in the title race.
Botafogo’s epic collapse in the second half of the season opened the title race up, allowing teams to reel them in.
Bragantino could be the biggest winner of Botafogo’s collapse, winning their first Serie A title. However, there are still plenty of points left up for grabs.
The Red Bull-owned club took 10 points from their last 18 points on offer in the league. Goals were scarce in Bragantino games, with just seven for and five against. The club has seen mixed results on the road this season, with a record of 6W-6D-4L.
Bragantino took 24 points from their 16 road games in comparison to 35 from 17 home matches. They outscored their opponents 20-17 on the road.
Flamengo also took 10 points from their last six games. They go into Friday night on a three-game unbeaten streak. Fla outscored their last six opponents 10-6.
Big Mengo have been solid at home with eight wins, five draws, and three defeats. They have a goal difference of +11, with 23 goals scored and 12 conceded.
The Red Bulls average 16.8 shots per game, the most in Serie A. However, they scored just the sixth-most goals in the league, with 46.
Striker Eduardo Sasha leads Bragantino in goals with 10. Teammate Thiago Borbas has added nine to the cause.
Flamengo scored 50 goals in their 33 league matches. It is the fourth-most goals in the league ahead of Friday’s clash with Bragantino. Forward Pedro leads Big Mengo in goals with 11. He is the only player in double digits.
The home team is unbeaten in the last four matches between Flamengo and Bragantino.
That trend does not bode well for Red Bull Bragantino in the Serie A title race. However, Bragantino went unbeaten in five of their last six head-to-head games versus Flamengo.
Earlier this season, Bragantino won 4-0 against Flamengo at home. Eduardo Santos opened the scoring for Red Bull before Henry Mosquera scored twice on either side of an Alerrandro goal. Three of the four goals came in the second half.
The trend between these two teams tells us the away team is winless in head-to-head matches between them.
Therefore, Flamengo should get a result at home, as the match ends in a 1-1 draw.