Preview:Flamengo vs Atletico Mineiro - prediction, team news, lineups

Title hopefuls Flamengo will go in search of a third straight victory when they welcome Atletico Mineiro to the Maracana on Sunday in gameweek 17 of the 2025 Brasileiro season.

Winning six of the most recent eight meetings, the hosts have dominated this fixture to a large degree against their visitors, who are without a win in two years.

Match preview

Back on the road for the first time since their 1-0 defeat to Santos, Flamengo looked set to suffer consecutive defeats before a late turnaround saw them down Red Bull Bragantino and leave Cicero de Souza Marques with all three points.

Lucas Barbosa's opener right after the interval was wiped out by Leo Pereira, after which Wesley popped up with an 85th-minute winner for Filipe Luis's men in what could be his last game for the club amid transfer interest from Roma.

Remaining hot on the heels of leaders Cruzeiro, O Mais Querido's tally of 33 points from 15 matches sees them sit just a point off top spot, having played one game fewer.

Flamengo's title charge has been characterised by solidity at both ends of the pitch, as they currently boast the most goals scored in the division (29) as well as the fewest conceded (six).

In the first of three clashes against the visitors over the next 10 days, this weekend's hosts are overwhelming favourites to come out on top on home turf, where their aggregate score across eight league matches so far currently stands at 20-1.

Atletico Mineiro's rough July spell continued after they were knocked out of the Copa Sudamericana playoffs by Colombian outfit Bucaramanga on penalties in Friday's second leg at the MRV Arena.

Alexi Stival's men had claimed a 1-0 victory in the first leg but saw their advantage cancelled out by Jefferson Mena, forcing the tie to head to the luxury of spot kicks where Carlos Henao, Mena and Aldair Zarate all fluffed their lines.

Prior to that, O Galo had lost both of their most recent two league outings clashes against Bahia and, most recently, Palmeiras, consequently dropping down to ninth in the standings, seven points shy of a Copa Libertadores spot.

With little time to dwell on their recent continental heartbreak, Mineiro will need to pick themselves up and get back to winning ways on the domestic scene to avoid losing further ground on teams around them.

Scoring the opening goal has often proven to be crucial in games involving Sunday's opponents, and the visitors could really do with striking the first blow against their hosts, who have been breached first in five of their last seven affairs.

Flamengo Brasileiro form:

Flamengo form (all competitions):

Atletico Mineiro Brasileiro form:

Atletico Mineiro form (all competitions):

Team News

Alex Sandro, Danilo and Gonzalo Plata are all nursing thigh injuries, ruling them out of contention for Flamengo.

Allan and Nicolas de la Cruz are also expected to miss out for the home side due to a lack of match fitness alongside new arrival Saul Niguez (leg).

Ayrton Lucas and Michael have both sat out each of the last three matches through leg and ankle injuries respectively, and the Brazilians are still a considerable way off returning to action.

Cadu and Caio Maia are both nursing long-term knee injuries and remain without an appearance for Mineiro this term.

Patrick Silva is facing an extended spell on the treatment table with a broken tailbone, while Guilherme Arana and Rubens are also sidelined for the away side.

Flamengo possible starting lineup:

Rossi; Varela, Pereira, Ortiz, Wesley; De Arrascaeta, Jorginho, E Araujo; Henrique, Pedro, L Araujo

Atletico Mineiro possible starting lineup:

Everson; Paulista, Alonso, Lyanco, Natanael; Vera, Scarpa; Dudu, Gomes, Rony; Hulk

We say: Flamengo 3-0 Atletico Mineiro

Flamengo are dealing with several injury casualties at the moment but should still have enough in the tank to navigate the challenge of Atletico Mineiro. We can see the home side running riot en route to an emphatic victory at the end of the 90 minutes.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.