Angry fans force Flamengo to move training

RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) -- Struggling Flamengo will spend this week training more than 100 kilometres away from their usual Rio de Janeiro base to distance themselves from angry supporters, club president Marcio Braga said on Monday.

Braga said Brazil's most popular club, who dropped back into the Brazilian championship relegation zone after losing 6-1 at Atletico Mineiro on Sunday, would stay in the city of Volta Redonda until the weekend.

The decision came after Flamengo players lashed out at fans who jeered, insulted and pushed them at the airport after they arrived at Rio de Janeiro airport on Sunday evening.

Television pictures showed goalkeeper Julio Cesar kicking one fan on the ground while defender Junior Baiano and veteran midfielder Zinho were also involved.

Julio Cesar, who left for Ecuador on Monday to join the Brazil squad for Wednesday's World Cup qualifier, said he had been pushed in the back while Zinho's father had been punched.

"The television pictures showed me lashing out but didn't show what happened earlier," he told reporters before boarding his flight.

"It was a cowardly act and the police only arrived after the worst had happened."

CONSIDERED QUITTING

Zinho, who played in Brazil's 1994 World Cup-winning team, sobbed as he told a television station he was considering quitting because of the incident.

Braga conceded he was shocked by Sunday's performance, which has left the club facing relegation for the first time in their history.

"I was speechless," he said. "Too lose 6-1 in a match of that importance, there's just no explanation."

Flamengo are 22nd in the 24-team table from which four teams are relegated. The four-times Brazilian champions face fellow strugglers and neighbours Botafogo next Sunday.

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