Volta Redonda vs Fluminense Prediction: This will be a replay of the last Carioca semi-final

Copa Libertadores' 2023 winners, Fluminense, will return to action a month after losing to Manchester City in the World Club Cup final. The Tricolor also won another title last year, the Campeonato Carioca, which is about to begin, kicking off the new season in Brazil. Fluminense has won the last two editions of the competition and has now won 33 Carioca titles, four fewer than rival Flamengo, the club with the most Rio state titles.

130 km from the capital, Volta Redonda is one of the largest cities in the interior of the Rio de Janeiro state. The club plays in the Série C and narrowly missed out on promotion to the Série B last year. The Voltaço was the last Campeonato Carioca's big surprise, finishing fourth in the regular phase and reaching the competition's semi-finals, where curiously, it was knocked out by the team that will be its first opponent in this Carioca, Fluminense. Volta Redonda won the first leg 2-1 but succumbed 7-0 at the Maracanã. The club will be looking to repeat its feat of finishing in the top four.

The Tricolor is the current Carioca champion and holder of the Guanabara Cup, the trophy awarded to the team that wins the regular phase of the Campeonato Carioca. The club's top players are still on vacation due to their participation in the World Club Cup, so the team Fluminense will field against Volta Redonda will be secondary. Fernando Diniz, the team's coach, who until recently was in charge of the Brazilian national team, has not yet returned to work either. An assistant will lead the team. Fluminense has to be considered the favorite due to its weight and history, and even because it knows the Raulino de Oliveira stadium well, used by the club several times when it's impossible to play at the Maracanã. However, this is not an easy game.

This game promises to be tricky for Fluminense, as in last year's Campeonato Carioca, Volta Redonda won both home games against Flu, one in the regular season and the other in the first leg of the semi-finals. To make things even more difficult for the Tricolor, neither coach Fernando Diniz nor his best players will be present, as they are still on vacation due to their participation in the World Club Cup. Fluminense certainly has a better chance of winning, but I'll bet on a surprise, using a Double Chance in favor of Volta Redonda.