Brazilian Serie A: Ceara vs Flamengo - Betting Tips, Odds & Prediction

After knocking Cruzeiro off the top of the Brazilian Serie A standings last week, Ceara now face another league leader. This time they’re at home, as they host Flamengo on Monday at Arena Castelao.

The Vozao defied odds across NZ betting sites to beat Cruzeiro on the road and break into the top 10 of the table. This also gave Flamengo the opportunity to leapfrog Cruzeiro and become the new leaders, a chance which they grabbed with two hands. 

However, the Rio de Janeiro side won’t be eager to return the favour as they prepare to face Ceara on their own turf. Read on for our breakdown of the best bets to make on the match.

Ceara

Ceara were a struggling side when they went to Belo Horizonte last week to face Cruzeiro. They couldn’t break the duck in six league matches and were on a three-match goalless run heading into that match. 

Football betting sites foresaw an easy win for the hosts, with markets shortening even further when Kaio Jorge struck to hand them an expected lead. Bruno Ferreira made a blunder and had to helplessly see Jorge tucking the ball into an empty net. 

Antonio Galeano, however, levelled the score six minutes before the first half whistle and scored the winning goal in the hour mark to turn the tie on its head. 

It was a big win for Ceara, but head coach Leonardo Rodrigues Conde will keep his expectations in check when his side host Flamengo at home on Monday. 

Team News: Skipper Luiz Otavio will have to watch from the sidelines again as he recovers from a knee injury. 

Predicted Lineup: Ferreira; Fabiano, Marllon, Machado, Nicolas; Araujo, Diego; Galeano, Mugni, Henrique; Raul.

Flamengo 

Flamengo have scored the highest goals in the Brazilian Serie A till now (30) and also conceded the least amount of goals (6). So, they are the most in-form team in the league on paper, and now they have the table position to show for that. 

O Mais Querido left it late again as they needed Leo Ortiz to score a 75th minute header to bring them the full points. They needed a late turnaround in the Red Bull Bragantino game as well to keep their winning run going.

Team News: Flamengo have a long list of injury and suspension related absentees. Pedro and Wallace Yan will be suspended for yellow card accumulation. Ayrton Lucas, Danilo, Alex Sandro, and Michael are injured. 

Predicted Lineup: Rossi; Varela, Pereira, Ortiz, Wesley; De Arrascaeta, Jorginho, E Araujo; Henrique, Juninho, L Araujo.

• This will be the first Ceara vs Flamengo match since 2022.
• Ceara and Flamengo shared the spoils in three of their last four meetings.
• Flamengo and Ceara have each won once in their last five head-to-head matches. 

Ceara have shown resilience in many games, and in their last match they proved that they have the ability to frustrate the best teams in the league. That’s why betting apps are offering a respectable return on a Flamengo win. 

The away side will also have to make do without several absentees. Pedro will be the biggest loss, given he has already scored five goals and made two assists this season. Ceara will look to maintain a solid defensive shape to choke out the Flamengo frontline. 

That said, Flamengo still have enough quality in the squad to grind out a win against a team that had looked lacklustre only a few weeks back. It should be a tight, low-scoring affair, but Flamengo will nick the win.

Flamengo 1- 0 Ceara @ $5.50

Ceara have struggled for goals this season and as we mentioned above they have failed to find the back of the net in three of their last four matches. They will be happy with a point in this match, so expect Leonardo Conde to set up a low block to frustrate the Flamengo attack. We are expecting Flamengo to register another 1-0 win for this reason, with this punt priced at a nice $5.50 at 20Bet.