Analysis: win gives Corinthians breathing space before crucial run | OneFootball

Corinthians was far from shining, but defeated Velo Clube 1-0 this Sunday at Benitão, in Rio Claro, for the fifth round of the Campeonato Paulista. The result gives Timão some breathing room in the State Championship standings before an important upcoming stretch.

The match was technically very poor. Corinthians' performance, in turn, was sleepy. Dorival Júnior's team hardly suffered defensively, except for two aerial plays, but created very little in attack.

On a night when Garro and Gui Negão were uninspired, it was up to Vitinho to create the team's main chances. He wasted opportunities and made wrong decisions, but he was involved in the winning goal for the black-and-whites in the final minutes.

In the play, the forward broke through on the left side and shot hard at goal, but was stopped by Marcelo Carné. The goalkeeper parried the ball into the middle of the area, and Yuri Alberto made no mistake on the rebound.

Relief for Dorival

The victory is a relief for Dorival, who now sees Corinthians in a much more comfortable situation in the Paulistão. The coach will be able to continue rotating the squad amid other upcoming tournaments.

Already this week, Timão hosts Bahia for the opening of the Brasileirão. Four days later, on Sunday, they face Flamengo in Brasília, for the Supercopa do Brasil.

Qualification for the next phase of the State Championship is not guaranteed, but it is well on track. In case of another slip-up, the team would run serious risks of missing out on the knockout stage.

Standings

With the win, Corinthians returned to victory in the State Championship after three matches and entered the qualifying zone for the next phase of the tournament. Timão now occupies fourth place in the standings, with eight points.

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Corinthians' next match

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.