Preview: Flamengo vs Sao Paulo - prediction, team news, lineups

Flamengo and Sao Paulo meet on Sunday, July 26, at 10:30pm (UK time) at the Maracana in the 20th round of the Brasileiro, with the fixture opening the second half of the competition and marking Flamengo's reunion with their supporters following the break for the World Cup.

Flamengo arrive on the back of a 4-0 thrashing of Chapecoense and sit second with 37 points from 18 matches (11 wins, four draws, three defeats), seven behind leaders Palmeiras, who still have a game in hand against Mirassol from round four, while Sao Paulo have gone six games without a win and slipped to 12th with 25 points from 19 rounds, having won seven, drawn four and lost eight.

Match preview

Flamengo returned from the World Cup break with authority, thrashing bottom-of-the-table Chapecoense 4-0 at the Arena Conda last Wednesday thanks to two goals from Pedro, one from Lorran and an own goal from Rafael Thyere.

The Rio de Janeiro side went 2-0 up before half time and then managed the game before extending their lead in the second half.

The main talking point of the night was the return of Arrascaeta, who came on in the second half to show he is close to reclaiming his starting spot after three months out with injuries to his collarbone and calf.

There was concern, however, over Gonzalo Plata, who felt pain in his right knee during the first half and was replaced by Lorran, the man who took his chance and scored, leaving the Ecuadorian's availability for Sunday uncertain, while De La Cruz, rested in Chapeco because of the synthetic pitch, trained normally and will be an option.

© Imago / IMAGO / Fotoarena

For Sao Paulo, the picture is one of turmoil after they played their 19th-round fixture at the Estadio Cicero de Souza Marques in Braganca Paulista, since the MorumBIS was booked for Harry Styles concerts, with Dorival Junior's side taking the lead against Athletico-PR before half time through Artur to lift the spirits of the travelling fans.

However, Leozinho scored twice in under six minutes at the start of the second half to turn the game around to 2-1, sending Athletico-PR back to Parana with all three points and leaving the Tricolor in a major crisis.

Dorival Junior, Sao Paulo's third manager in 2026 after Hernan Crespo and Roger Machado, has still not managed to halt the team's dip in form, and with no sign of improvement even after the World Cup break, the gap to Bahia, who occupy the final Libertadores qualification spot, already stands at five points, leaving Sao Paulo's target of Copa Libertadores qualification looking increasingly distant.

In the reverse fixture, Sao Paulo beat Flamengo 2-1 at the MorumBIS on the opening weekend of the Brasileiro through goals from Luciano and Danielzinho, with Plata pulling one back for Flamengo before Jorginho was sent off in stoppage time, though despite that defeat, Flamengo remain firmly in the title race, six points behind leaders Palmeiras, who have a game in hand.

Sao Paulo, meanwhile, have been in freefall since Hernan Crespo's departure, having already been eliminated from the Copa do Brasil by Juventude, leaving the Copa Sudamericana, where they await their last-16 opponent from the tie between Gremio and Bolivar, as their only remaining route to silverware in 2026.

Flamengo Brasileiro form:

Flamengo form (all competitions):

Sao Paulo Brasileiro form:

Sao Paulo form (all competitions):

Team News

© Imago

Flamengo have at least four confirmed absentees: Carrascal will serve the third and final match of his STJD suspension following his red card against Palmeiras in May, Lucas Paqueta was injured on international duty with Brazil at the World Cup and is currently doing fieldwork with the physiotherapy team with no immediate return date, Luiz Araujo is being treated for a left knee injury that will not require surgery, and Leo Ortiz, who has been recovering from injury, should be included in the squad.

Arrascaeta, who came on well in Chapeco and had three extra days to build up his fitness, is pushing for a starting role, while De La Cruz, rested on Wednesday because of the synthetic pitch at the Arena Conda, returns to the side and should take up his place in midfield, with Plata remaining a doubt as he is reassessed after suffering pain in his right knee.

Pedro, Flamengo's top scorer this season with 21 goals, 12 of them in the Brazilian Championship alone, scored twice in Chapeco and is enjoying his best spell of form this year, while Bruno Henrique and Samuel Lino compete for the remaining places in attack.

On the Sao Paulo side, there was a further injury blow on Wednesday when Rafael Toloi left the pitch in pain against Athletico-PR, with scans on Thursday (24) confirming a strain in his right thigh, adding to the absence of Lucas Moura, who remains out with a ruptured Achilles tendon and no expected return date this season.

Arboleda, reinstated to the squad during the World Cup break following a spell out of the team for indiscipline, is set to start, likely alongside Sabino, and in the transfer market the Tricolor brought in forward Victor Sa and Newton along with full back Aurelio Buta, who has been officially announced but is not yet ready to make his debut, while Alan Franco left on loan to Tigres of Mexico and Cedric Soares, Luan, Young and Paulinho have all been frozen out with departures in the pipeline.

Flamengo possible starting lineup:

Rossi; Varela (Emerson Royal), Leo Pereira, Vitao, Alex Sandro; Erick Pulgar, De La Cruz, Everton Araujo (Jorginho); Arrascaeta (Samuel Lino), Bruno Henrique, Pedro

Sao Paulo possible starting lineup:

Rafael; Lucas Ramon, Arboleda, Sabino (Osorio), Wendell; Pablo Maia, Marcos Antonio, Bobadilla; Artur, Luciano, Calleri

We say: Flamengo 2-1 Sao Paulo

Home advantage, the technical quality of the squad and the return of key players such as Arrascaeta and De La Cruz put Flamengo in a comfortable position to control the game, with Pedro, the club's top scorer with 13 goals in the competition, posing the main threat to the Sao Paulo goal.

Sao Paulo, even weakened, still have Calleri and Luciano capable of creating danger in isolated moments, and while the Tricolor are expected to struggle for most of the match, they do have the potential to find the net, as they showed against Athletico-PR even in the midst of their crisis.

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