DOHA • Flamengo's maiden trip to a Club World Cup will end in a title match, and their coach Jorge Jesus is already pumped up to win the tournament on Saturday.
Forward Bruno Henrique scored one goal and made two more to book his team's place in the final, as the Brazilian giants came from behind to beat Asian champions Al Hilal 3-1 in Doha on Tuesday.
"This is the cherry on the cake for the season that Flamengo have had," said Portuguese coach Jesus, the former Benfica boss who also had a spell in charge at Al Hilal last year.
"I don't care whether we play Liverpool or the Mexican side. We didn't think about Liverpool before playing Al Hilal but I am always impressed with European football and I believe they are the favourites.
"When we came here to Qatar we wanted to win the Club World Cup, and now we want it even more."
Salem Al-Dawsari gave the Saudis a deserved lead in the 18th minute on a rare rainy night at the Khalifa International Stadium, but Flamengo woke up after the interval and equalised through Giorgian de Arrascaeta - assisted by Henrique - four minutes after the restart.
Henrique then headed home after 78 minutes and the Rio club made sure of their win when his low cross was turned into his own net by defender Ali Albulayhi with eight minutes to play.
The Brazilians will play the winner of yesterday's second semi-final in Doha, where Liverpool faced Mexican club Monterrey - the result of which was not available at press time.
Fresh from winning only their second Copa Libertadores and the Brazilian title in the last month, Flamengo are hoping to clinch this trophy for the first time, as are the English Premier League leaders.
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Trophies Flamengo have already picked up this season (Copa Libertadores, Brazil league title, and Rio de Janeiro state championship). They are in line for a fourth after reaching the Club World Cup final.
However, they did win the old Intercontinental Cup in 1981, a side captained by Zico defeating Liverpool 3-0 in Tokyo.
"The final for us will be faced without fear of anyone," Jesus added.
"When we arrived we thought we could be world champions; now we are in the final. We are a team that never fails in the decisive moments.
"This will be the most important final of my career. At this moment, what makes the difference is the way Flamengo players welcomed me, shared (with) me and accepted my ideas. So, this is the strongest group I've had."
AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, ASSOCIATED PRESS
