Corinthians aim to extend strong record against Cruzeiro in women’s game | OneFootball

Corinthians faces Cruzeiro early on Monday evening (31), at 7:15 p.m. (Brasília time), at Arena Independência, in the first leg of the 2026 Brazilian Women’s Championship quarterfinals. In the first phase of the national tournament, the teams met at Arena do Jacaré on May 18, and the Minas Gerais side won 3-2.

Looking to maintain a perfect record in the Brasileirão Feminino quarterfinals, Corinthians also hopes to improve its historical numbers against Cruzeiro in the women’s game since 2016. Throughout history, the two teams have faced each other in 14 matches, with ten Corinthians wins, two draws, and two losses — 34 goals scored and 21 conceded.

Photo: Staff Images Woman/CBF

The first meeting between the teams in the women’s game took place on September 7, 2020. On that occasion, Corinthians thrashed the Minas Gerais side 4-1 at Estádio Alfredo Schürig, Fazendinha, in the first phase of that year’s Brazilian Women’s Championship. Gabi Zanotti, Cacau, Gabi Portilho, and Pâmela scored for the Brabas.

As for matches in the Brazilian Championship, the Brabas have eight wins, one draw, and two losses — 31 goals scored and 20 conceded. Tonight’s clash will be the seventh between the teams in knockout matches. So far, the club from Parque São Jorge has come out on top on the other six occasions.

The first knockout meeting took place in 2023, in the quarterfinals of the Brazilian Women’s Championship. In the first leg, the Brabas won 2-1, with goals from Gabi Zanotti and Vic Albuquerque. In the second match, played at Fazendinha, Corinthians beat its rival 4-2, with goals from Tamires, Duda Sampaio, Vic Albuquerque, and Jheniffer. The result sent Timão through to the semifinals with a 6-3 aggregate score.

In 2024, in the Women’s Super Cup final, the Brabas won 1-0, with a free-kick goal scored by midfielder Duda Sampaio. Last year, Corinthians and Cruzeiro faced each other in the Brazilian Women’s Championship final. Before that, in the semifinal of the same tournament, at Estádio Primeiro de Maio in São Bernardo do Campo, Corinthians won 1-0, with a goal from Vic Albuquerque.

Later, still in 2025, in the third round of the Copa do Brasil, the club from Parque São Jorge advanced on penalties, winning 4-2 in the shootout after a 1-1 draw in regular time. The match took place at Estádio Castor Cifuentes, in Nova Lima, Minas Gerais. The most recent knockout tie up to that point came in September last year, when the two teams met again, this time in the Brasileirão Feminino final.

In the first leg, played at Arena Independência, Alvinegro drew 2-2, with goals from right-back Gi Fernandes and midfielder Gabi Zanotti. In the second match, at Neo Química Arena, Corinthians beat Raposa 1-0. The goal was scored by center-back Thaís Ferreira, securing Timão’s seventh title in the national competition — 2018, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, and 2025.

The second leg of the quarterfinals between Corinthians and Cruzeiro will take place next Monday, September 7, at 5 p.m. (Brasília time), Brazil’s Independence Day holiday. There is still no decision on whether it will be held at Neo Química Arena or another venue, since Fazendinha does not have the minimum capacity to host the match.

Top scorer in the history of the matchup

Corinthians’ top scorer in the history of this matchup against Cruzeiro is midfielder Gabi Zanotti, who has eight goals in 12 matches. The No. 10 has worn the Brabas shirt since April 2018 and, since then, has totaled 95 goals and 39 assists in 278 matches (224 as a starter), with 213 wins, 40 draws, and 25 losses — an 81.4% success rate. In addition, she has won 18 titles with the club across the Brazilian Championship, Conmebol Libertadores, Paulistão, and Copa Paulista.

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