Flamengo Missing Key Midfielder Ahead of Club World Cup Clash With Bayern

Flamengo held their second training session in Orlando on Thursday as they gear up for Sunday’s Club World Cup round-of-16 match against Bayern Munich. But the Brazilian side is dealing with a key absence. According to Lance!, midfielder Nicolás de la Cruz missed training once again due to a lingering knee injury.

The Uruguayan hasn’t featured since suffering a left knee sprain on May 18 during a derby against Botafogo. Despite briefly returning to field work last week, De la Cruz resumed physiotherapy and was unavailable for Thursday’s full-squad training.

Media were allowed to view the opening 15 minutes of the session, held at ESPN’s Wide World of Sports complex. Flamengo players, under the guidance of coach Filipe Luís, went through light warm-ups, quick passing drills, and finishing exercises in a relaxed atmosphere.

Sporting director José Boto was also on-site, observing the session closely. Before training, veteran forward Bruno Henrique — formerly of Wolfsburg — previewed the clash, identifying one-on-one duels as a critical factor.

“They’re a compact team that defends hard, very man-to-man. But we have quick players up front who can make the difference,” he said.

With De la Cruz still sidelined, Flamengo will rely on other creative outlets as they prepare to face the German giants.