After four games without winning, Flamengo beat Ceara on Saturday 1-0 at the Maracana stadium.
The match saw the debut of Flamengo's Leandro Amaral and Renato Abreu.
The game's only goal came in the 44th minute. After Willians was tackled inside the box, Flamengo was awarded a penalty kick. The Serbian midfielder Petkovic stepped in to take the kick and did not disappoint, sending the ball into the back of the Ceara net.
The win provisionally takes Flamengo to seventh place with 20 points. Their placement will depend on Sunday's other matches.
In the 15th round of play, Flamengo will travel to play Atletico-PR on August 22.
Ceara's loss drops them to fourth place with 21 points. In the next round of play, Ceara will host Gremio on August 21.