Corinthians boss: Memphis may play up front, full-back roles differ

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Central do Timão

·26. Februar 2026

Corinthians boss: Memphis may play up front, full-back roles differ

By Henrique Pereira / Central do Timão Editorial Team

Corinthians faced Cruzeiro on the night of last Wednesday (25), at Mineirão Stadium, in a match valid for the fourth round of the Brazilian Championship and drew 1-1. After the match, coach Dorival Júnior spoke about the differences between the starting and reserve full-back pairs at Corinthians. The coach pointed out that Bidu and Matheuzinho offer different characteristics compared to Pedro Milans and Fabrizio Angileri.

“First, the characteristics of Bidu, Matheus, Pedro, and Fabrício are different. So, we have to adapt to all of this, because we need to be aware that playing one way I don’t have wingers, playing another way I did have wingers, as was the case with Dieguinho in the second half and Vitinho for much of the first and up to the middle of the second. So, what differentiates one formation from another is precisely the characteristics of those playing and the attackers up front.”, the coach began in a press conference.

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Photo: Rodrigo Coca/Ag. Corinthians

“I think Matheus and Bidu already have slightly different characteristics, they support at important moments, all of this also due to the time working together. For Fabrício, it was his first match after almost two months, so we have to be patient so that we can evolve as the games go by and as each of them grows. What’s important is that they gave us a very positive response, held on for 90 minutes, Pedro is in a process of evolution, improving, starting to gain confidence, which is all we want, and each one, within their own characteristics, we’ll shape the team according to the starting lineups.”, he continued.

Next, Dorival Júnior spoke about the performance of midfielder André Carrillo, who returned to play a full match after almost seven months. The coach praised the player’s performance and celebrated his physical improvement.

“Well, I think it’s gratifying to see that he’s also getting back into condition, improving, played a very good match, both in terms of physical performance and technically, dictated the rhythm of our team, especially from the moment we stabilized a bit more in the match itself. I hope he continues to maintain this condition he’s been showing.”, he commented.

“I think that’s fundamental, it’s all we want, for him to handle the match within the conditions he presents, because he’s a very important player, a player who dictates the rhythm, and I think that’s fundamental for our team. If we had been a bit more patient, worked the ball, played on the flanks, brought it inside, switched sides, maybe we could have had better luck in the second half.”, Dorival added.

The Corinthians coach also heaped praise on João Pedro Tchoca, the scorer of Timão’s goal in the match, and pointed out that Torino made a mistake by not completing his transfer. The defender had agreed terms with the Italian club, but saw the deal fall through after a physical issue was detected in medical exams.

“I think he’s a boy with personality, presence, posture. In my opinion, Torino made a wrong decision—I respect it, but it was a mistake—especially since he played almost every match we put him in last year, never had a physical problem, held up, gave a very positive response, so much so that he caught the attention of some clubs, including Torino itself. That move wasn’t healthy for anyone, and you can be sure that maybe they’ll regret it in a short time, because this boy can still grow a lot and maybe find a very positive path in his career.”, said Dorival Júnior.

Finally, the coach spoke about Memphis’s positioning and pointed out that the forward can play as a number 9 in the absence of Yuri Alberto. The coach also revealed that he could have kept Pedro Raul alongside the Dutchman if Cruzeiro’s right-back William’s sending off had happened at another moment.

“He plays in that position for the Netherlands national team, he knows that area, he’s a natural finisher, so there’s no reason not to use him in that situation. Sometimes with one, sometimes with two forwards. We could have kept Pedro if the sending off had happened a little later. We would have kept the same team, adding Memphis and making another type of change, but it had already happened. At the moment of the sending off, we just had to maintain what the team had been presenting. If we had been a bit more patient and a little more organized, maybe we would have had better luck in the second half.”, Dorival concluded.

Corinthians won’t have much time to rest and already have a challenge ahead as they face Novorizontino this Saturday (28), at 8:30 pm (Brasília time), away from home, in a match valid for the semifinals of the Campeonato Paulista.

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