Fluminense will aim to build upon their point against Borussia Dortmund when they face Ulsan at the 2025 Fifa Club World on Saturday.
The Brazilian side drew 0-0 with the former European champions on Tuesday, having 14 of the 21 attempts between the teams.
“It was a great performance of intensity,” said midfielder Martinelli, via Globo. “Collectively, we did very well, applying pressure, medium block and low block.
“They had few chances. This is the level we have to maintain throughout the competition. There are a lot of games in Brazil and you can’t recover 100% for every game.
“Here, we had about 15 days. We were able to train hard and do gym work. That gave everyone a boost to start the competition well.”
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Reigning Korean champions Ulsan had precious little possession as they lost their first match 1-0 to South African club Mamelodi Sundowns.
Fifa President Gianni Infantino was among the crowd of well under 4,000 in Orlando, with coach Kim Pan-gon admitting that he had targeted victory because Fluminense and Borussia Dortmund “are favourites” to beat Ulsan.
“Our players gave their best efforts and we’re very proud,” said Pan-gon, via Newspim, emphasising the importance of a quick recovery.
Pan-gon switched to a three-man defence for the contest. “There were some regrets, but we created good opportunities in the first half, so I think positively,” he reflected, backing his tactics.
“There was an organisational problem with the team as a whole. If that improves, I think [our defensive approach] is positive.”
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Fluminense v Ulsan team news
New Fluminense signing Soteldo is unlikely to play at the tournament after the Venezuela winger or attacking midfielder suffered a left thigh injury.
Uruguay midfielder Agustin Canobbio was a surprise inclusion against Dortmund and former Brazil centre-back Thiago Silva is a reassuring presence at centre-half.
Gustav Ludwigson – usually a forward – and winger Um Won-sang were deployed as wing-backs against the Sundowns and Pan-gon’s qualified praise suggests they will stick with the system.
“I expected more aggressive penetration from [the pair],” he said. “Um Won-sang, in particular, had a good performance.
“As the two players are aggressive and we have good central defenders, we had no choice but to take risks in defence [out wide].”
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Signed earlier this month, Pole Milosz Trojak is likely to start again but fellow centre-back Myung-Guan Seo suffered a late injury.
Ulsan made attacking changes after falling behind, bringing on Lee Hee-gyun and Lee Jin-hyun for Jung Woo-young and Darijan Bojanic.
Venezuela international Matias Lacava had a one-on-one chance after replacing veteran former Bolton Wanderers, Crystal Palace and South Korea winger Lee Chung-yong.
Fluminense v Ulsan expected line-ups
Fluminense starting XI: Fabio; Samuel Xavier, Thiago Silva, Freytes, Rene; Martinelli, Hercules, Nonato; Canobbio, Arias, Everaldo
Ulsan starting XI: Jo; Trojak, Woo, Kim, Ludwigson, Lee; Jung, Bojanic, Ko; Um, Farias
How to watch Fluminense v Ulsan: TV and online streams
Kick-off on Saturday is at 23:00 BST, with live coverage on DAZN.
DAZN subscribers or Freemium member can tune in as part of their existing membership, while non-subscribers can register for a free account to start watching.
Fans can watch on the go via the DAZN App on smart TVs, phones, tablets, games consoles and streaming devices.
