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New York Times
4 hours ago
- Sport
- New York Times
Filipe Luis: The Flamengo coach who is making a hard job look easy
As a player, Filipe Luis worked with some of the most influential coaches of the modern era. Diego Simeone, Jose Mourinho, Jorge Jesus: they all left their mark on him, shaped his ideas about football. If one single maxim stuck in his mind, though, it was the one made famous by Luis Aragones, the former Atletico Madrid and Spain manager: 'Win, win and win again,' was how Aragones defined his non-philosophy. No rigid ideological beliefs, no high-mindedness. Just find a way, then repeat. Advertisement 'That's the only path in football,' Filipe Luis said in an interview with at the start of the month. 'I don't consider myself a philosophical guy. I'm very practical. I don't like to set out a big objective beyond winning the next match.' At that point, his Flamengo side had not begun their Club World Cup campaign. They had not yet beaten Esperance, not yet played Chelsea off the park in Philadelphia, not yet finished top of Group D. Had you offered all of that to the club's fans, they'd have snapped your arm off. Had you offered it to Filipe Luis, he'd have told you off for thinking too far ahead. That approach has paid dividends since he took charge of Flamengo's first team eight months ago. It is a notoriously tricky job. Flamengo's fanbase is the biggest in Brazil and probably the most demanding. Some very good managers have been chewed up and spat out over the years. Filipe Luis grew up a Flamengo fan. He played 175 times for the club between 2019 and 2023, winning two Brazilian championships and two Copa Libertadores titles but also tasting the despair that never seems far from the surface. He knew what he was getting into, knew that failing might cast a shadow on the good times. He went for it anyway. And, so far, he has made it all look easy. A left-back of rare poise and grace, Filipe Luis was a fixture of the Atletico Madrid side that lost two Champions League finals to city rivals Real. He played 44 times for Brazil, went to the 2018 World Cup, took home a Copa America winner's medal the following year. Off the pitch, he was an atypical footballer, as well as a journalist's dream. This was a guy who was more comfortable talking about politics, culture and current affairs than he was moaning about referees. 'Cinema moulded my personality,' he told The Guardian in 2021. In a wide-ranging interview with El Mundo in 2017, he shared his views on Catalan separatism, state ownership of football and even science. 'I'm passionate about astrophysics,' he said. 'I need to understand even though I know we will never understand everything.' Even then, he knew he wanted to become a coach. That ambition only came into greater focus at Flamengo. He took on a leadership role under Portuguese manager Jorge Jesus, took it upon himself to analyse opponents and team-mates. 'He was always in his room, watching matches, sending us videos,' former team-mate Gabriel Barbosa recalled in December. Advertisement Things happened fast after he hung up his boots in December 2023. Filipe started off coaching Flamengo's under-17 s but soon got promoted to the under-20s. When Tite — Filipe Luis' old Brazil manager — was fired last September, he was fast-tracked to the first team. He inherited a good side, but one that was too polite, too passive in the final third. That didn't sit right with him. 'I want us to be a team that makes things hard for our opponents,' he said at his unveiling. 'Flamengo have to play in a certain way: always pressuring, always attacking. That's non-negotiable.' He had the advantage of knowing the squad inside-out. Even now, most of Flamengo's players are former team-mates. The changes he made in those first weeks — a higher press, greater urgency, a couple of positional tweaks, more faith in Barbosa and young full-back Wesley — were subtle but impactful. Nine game games into his reign, Flamengo won the Brazilian Cup. The early impressions could not have been more positive. 'He was so well prepared,' says Vinicius Bergantin, Filipe Luis' assistant coach between September 2024 and February 2025. 'He was studious, restless, always thinking about the little details, always wanting to go deeper. He always explained to the players why we were doing certain things, how it fed into his style of play, how it was relevant to the next opponent. Everything made sense.' That chimes with the view of Jose Boto, who arrived as Flamengo's director of football in December and was immediately bowled over. 'I could see his quality from the first moment,' Boto tells The Athletic. 'The first that struck me was his work ethic. He's completely dedicated and works around the clock. He has this need to learn, to understand everything. He also has this wealth of tactical knowledge, which is particularly impressive for someone who retired so recently.' Advertisement On the training ground, Filipe Luis is busy and hands-on. The players feel they can talk to him as a peer. 'He doesn't think he's the sole owner of the truth,' winger Michael said in January. 'He knows how to listen.' Bergantin agrees: 'He's collaborative. He wants to bring out the qualities in every player.' Between 22 January and 9 April, Flamengo went on a 16-match unbeaten run. They won 13 of those games. The sequence took them to the Rio state championship title. The style of play also sparked comparisons with the great Flamengo team of the 1980s. 'We haven't seen football like this for many years,' Andrade, part of the Flamengo side that beat Liverpool in the 1981 Intercontinental Cup, told GloboEsporte. 'They play like we did, always in the opposition half, always looking to hurt the opposition. This is the kind of team Flamengo fans dream about.' Not just Flamengo fans. When Brazil dismissed Dorival Junior in March, many saw Filipe Luis as the ideal replacement. 'People want to see Brazil play like Brazil again, just as our fans wanted to see Flamengo play more like Flamengo,' said Flamengo president Luiz Eduardo Baptista, phlegmatically. 'I don't have the slightest doubt that he'll coach the national team one day. But I know Felipe and I would be surprised if he took on that challenge now.' He didn't. In typical fashion, Flamengo's form then wavered: two underwhelming performances against Argentine side Central de Cordoba left them teetering on the brink of early elimination from the Libertadores. For the first time, Filipe Luis was forced into some crisis management. 'The turbulence is external,' he insisted on 10 May. 'Internally, the players continue to believe, to work, to fight, to learn, to improve. I have complete conviction in what I am doing. I really believe in my work.' Results improved. Flamengo ground out two wins to progress in the Libertadores, made a commanding start to the national championship. When the latter paused for the Club World Cup, Flamengo were top on goal difference. They have scored the most goals in the league and conceded the fewest. Advertisement Their manager, of course, will not have let that form go to his head. Simeone — the first person he texted after the Brazilian Cup win — is an enduring influence; Filipe Luis often quotes the Argentine's 'game by game' mantra. 'I define myself as a coach without memory,' he said in a press conference in November. 'I like to delete everything and go on to the next challenge.' The group stage, that Chelsea result? All in the rear-view. Next up? Bayern Munich and another chance to test himself against a major European team. For those who know him, there is a degree of confidence that we will be seeing a lot more of Filipe Luis on the world stage in the years ahead. 'He has a very clear idea of what he wants,' says Boto. 'I have no doubt that he will soon be seen as one of the top coaches in the world.' Bergantin disagrees, but only slightly. 'I think he already is,' he says.
Metro
5 hours ago
- Sport
- Metro
Is there a third place play-off at the Club World Cup 2025?
The Club World Cup has entered the knockout phase as the remaining 16 teams turn their attention towards the final and a huge cash prize. The expanded 32-team tournament has not been short of surprises in the group stages, with several upsets and impressive results from some of the competitions lesser-known sides. Atletico Madrid have been sent packing in the group stages after Diego Simeone's side finished third behind the Brazilian Botafogo in Group B. Elsewhere, both Bayern Munich and Chelsea failed to top their respective groups after surprise losses to Benfica and Flamengo respectively. Enzo Maresca's side will take on Benfica in the round of 16, while the other Premier League side, Manchester City, will play Al-Hilal on June 30. Wake up to find news on your club in your inbox every morning with Metro's Football Newsletter. Sign up to our newsletter and then select your team in the link we'll send you so we can get football news tailored to you. Both clubs are on the same side of the draw and could meet in the semi-finals of the tournament. And while the victor of that potential semi-final would progress to the final, what happens with the losers? Let's find out. No, there is not a third-place play-off at the Club World Cup 2025. Given concerns over player welfare and the added demands of an expanded Club World Cup, it is perhaps no surprise that FIFA decided to do without a third place play-off for this tournament. After the semi-final stage, the competition will therefore just finish with the final on Sunday 13th July at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey. On the other side of the knockout bracket, Lionel Messi will face his former club as Inter Miami will play Paris Saint-Germain in the round of 16. More Trending Bayern Munich will meet Flamengo, who finished top of Group D ahead of Chelsea. Borussia Dortmund will play Mexican side Monterrey, while Real Madrid will meet Juventus. The quarter-finals are set to take place on July 4 and 5, with the two semi-finals taking place on July 8 and 9 ahead of Sunday's final. Group stage win: £1.4million Group stage draw: £739,000 Round of 16: £5.5million Quarter-final: £9.6million Semi-final: £15.5million Final: £22.1million Winners: £29.5million For more stories like this, check our sport page. Follow Metro Sport for the latest news on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. MORE: Enzo Maresca sends transfer message to Chelsea defender and confirms two clubs 'like him' MORE: Chelsea star could push for transfer after Arsenal and PSG interest MORE: Dortmund interested in £35m Chelsea star as Jamie Gittens transfer gets closer
India Today
12 hours ago
- Sport
- India Today
Real Madrid, Lionel Messi's Inter Miami amongst biggest crowd pullers in Club World Cup
Real Madrid and Lionel Messi's Inter Miami remain amongst the biggest crowd-pullers in the FIFA Club World Cup, being hosted in the United States of America, reported Sports Business Journal on Friday, June 27. The revamped tournament is averaging attendance of 34,770 through its group stage matches heading into the knockout stages, the report further place in the United States this year, many of the games were hosted in larger venues, mainly NFL stadiums, allowing for larger crowds to attend. But that also had the double-edged effect of creating more empty seats for the lower-profile matches. Fourteen individual matches drew crowds of more than 50,000, led by the impressive turnout of just over 80,000 (80,619) at the Rose Bowl for Paris Saint-Germain's 4-0 win over Atletico Madrid was the biggest selling point for the tournament, boasting three of the top five best-attended matches in group play. An average of 65,825 fans attended their three games, best among all teams. Champions League winners Paris Saint-Germain clocked an average attendance of 61,649. Diego Simeone's Atletico Madrid saw 51,749 fans attending their matches on average, while local favourites, Lionel Messi's Inter Miami, pulled in 51,208 fans on average. South American giants Palmeiras were fifth on this list, clocking their average attendance at 47,456. Among venues, Hard Rock Stadium in South Florida had the highest average attendance (52,955).At the other end of the spectrum, the lowest attended match was Mamelodi Sundowns vs. Ulsan HD, with a paltry 3,412 fans present. Twelve stadiums across 11 cities have hosted a total of 1.668 million World Cup FixturesThe group stage of the tournament will run until July 2. Inter Miami vs. PSG and Real Madrid vs. Juventus remain two of the biggest group stage fixtures in this tournament that are still to be played. The quarter-final fixtures start from July 5, while the final will be hosted on July 14.- EndsTrending Reel
Yahoo
21 hours ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Atletico Madrid ‘warned off' signing key defensive target
Diego Simeone is ready to launch a summer squad rebuild following Atletico Madrid's FIFA Club World Cup exit. Los Rojiblancos were dumped out in the group stages following a poor showing in the USA earlier this month. Advertisement Simeone's charges will now head away on their summer breaks but the Argentinian coach is already planning for next season. Defence is rumoured to be a key area of focus for Simeone despite completing a permanent deal for France international Clement Lenglet from Barcelona. Atletico Madrid have been linked with several targets but interest in Bayer Leverkusen centre back Piero Hincapie has been rejected by the German club at this stage. Premier League side fire Atletico Madrid transfer warning Simeone remains keen on a move for Tottenham defender Cristian Romero after admitting he is a big fan of his fellow countryman. Advertisement Spurs' victory in the UEFA Europa League final has given the club a back door route into the Champions League next season and bolstered their finances in the process. Image via James Gill – Danehouse/Getty Images The pressure to sell Romero is now reduced and new boss Thomas Frank is keen to retain Romero alongside Micky van de Ven as his first choice centre back pairing as part of his bold plans for the squad. Tottenham set Romero asking price to Atletico Madrid As per the latest update from the Daily Telegraph, Tottenham will not be 'bullied' into accepting any offers that fall below their current transfer valuation of the 27-year-old. Advertisement Frank and the Spurs hierarchy will push for a minimum of £60m and they will only accept if Romero indicates his desire to leave North London for Madrid in July. The Premier League side could also have an extra incentive to retain Romero, with doubts growing over captain Son Heung-min staying beyond the summer, and they could offer the former Atalanta defender the armband for the 2025/26 campaign.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Atletico Madrid reach deal for €50m star signing
Atletico Madrid and Villarreal have reportedly reached an agreement for midfielder Alex Baena, after several weeks of negotiations. Although none have been made official yet, Baena is set to become their third major addition this summer after Matteo Ruggeri and Johnny Cardoso. Cardoso will set Atletico back in excess of €30m, while Ruggeri's deal could rise to €20m. Including Baena's deal, Atletico's spend could push over €100m for the second summer in a row. The deal was first reported by David Medina, but Fabrizio Romano has give further details, stating that the deal will be worth €45m plus €5m in variables. Los Colchoneros' guaranteed spend is a minimum of €93m in fixed fees. Atletico Madrid moving quickly for priorities On Wednesday night, Villarreal all but confirmed that Baena would be heading to Atletico Madrid, and backed Diego Simeone to get the best out of him. The clubs still have to resolve some details, such as a payment schedule, but the move has now been agreed upon by both clubs and the player. Los Rojiblancos agreed a contract with Baena several weeks ago, with the 23-year-old giving the green light to a move. It is thought that Baena was keen to make the switch to the Metropolitano, and despite having a €55m release clause, Villarreal were willing to work with Baena after he turned down a move to Saudi Arabia in January. Image via X / Sport One of La Liga's best creators Baena comes with a proven track record of providing goals for his teammates, and he should significantly improve the service for the likes of Alexander Sorloth and Julian Alvarez. The former had his best season in Spain with Baena two years ago, and over the last two seasons, Baena has 28 assists and 12 goals. He usually operates off the left side of midfield, a position that has had no clear owner this season, with Conor Gallagher and Samuel Lino sharing game time there.
