Gonzalo Plata’s Flamengo are out of the Copa Libertadores. The Brazilian leaders drew 0-0 with Estudiantes at the Maracanã on Thursday night, after a 0-0 first leg in La Plata, and lost the semifinal 3-2 on penalties. Plata came off the bench late and had a shot saved by Fernando Muslera. Anthony Valencia was not in the matchday squad.
How the night went for Plata
Plata started on the bench in both legs of the semifinal, as El Comercio noted. Flamengo’s official live feed on X logged a triple change with about ten minutes left in the second half: Erick, Samuel Lino and Alex Sandro off, Plata, Bruno Henrique and Ayrton Lucas on (ESPN had Plata’s introduction at 82 minutes). A minute later the club posted “PLATA!!!”: Lucas Paquetá had played him through, but the Ecuadorian was denied by the goalkeeper.
FotMob credits Plata with 8 minutes and one shot on target, but gave him no match rating. According to ESPN’s EFE match report, he was not one of Flamengo’s penalty takers.
| Gonzalo Plata vs Estudiantes | Oct 22 |
|---|---|
| Minutes | 8 (FotMob) |
| Goals / assists | 0 / 0 |
| Shots on target | 1 |
| FotMob rating | – |
| Penalty in the shoot-out | Did not take one |
The shoot-out
Muslera was the hero again in the shoot-out, saving from Jorginho, Paquetá and Bruno Henrique. Giorgian de Arrascaeta and Léo Pereira scored for Flamengo. For Estudiantes, Sosa, Mancuso and Palacios scored and Cetré missed. Estudiantes played much of the second half with ten men after Baltasar Rodríguez was sent off for a second yellow card, and still held on. They will play Palmeiras in the final on Saturday, Nov 28, at the Estadio Centenario in Montevideo.
Flamengo confirmed the exit on X: “O Flamengo encerra a sua participação na Libertadores em 2026” (“Flamengo’s 2026 Libertadores campaign is over”).
Anthony Valencia: left out, and a loan rumor
Valencia was not in Flamengo’s squad on Thursday. FotMob lists his last appearance as a six-minute cameo against Remo on Sep 6.
Rumor: Bolavip’s Gustavo Dávila, citing Brazilian broadcaster Band Sports, reported on Wednesday that Flamengo could send Valencia out on loan for 2027, with Mexican clubs América and Tigres named as the main candidates. The report says he has played fewer than 20 minutes for Flamengo, sits behind Plata and Jorge Carrascal in the pecking order, and cost about $5 million from Antwerp. Band Sports is a national TV outlet, but this comes second-hand through an aggregator and neither club has commented, so treat it as moderately reliable.
What’s next
Flamengo can now focus on the Brasileirão, which they lead with 67 points, one ahead of Palmeiras (ESPN). Next up is Atlético Mineiro at the Maracanã on Monday, Oct 26, at 7:00 PM ET. That game could feature five Ecuadorians: Plata and Valencia for Flamengo, and Alan Franco, Ángelo Preciado and Alan Minda for Atlético.
Follow every La Tri player’s latest game on the Players Tracker. Plata’s last outing before this was his 10th Flamengo goal at Bahia.
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