Corinthians boss on season plans, Angileri deal, key full-backs

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Central do Timão

·5 February 2026

Corinthians boss on season plans, Angileri deal, key full-backs

By Fabio Luigi / Central do Timão Editorial Team

At the beginning of the afternoon this Monday (4th), almost three days after winning the Supercopa do Brasil against Flamengo at Estádio Mané Garrincha in Brasília, with a score of 2 x 0, Corinthians coach Dorival Júnior gave an interview at CT Dr. Joaquim Grava and commented on various topics related to the club.

Initially, the Corinthians manager was asked about the team's planning for the season, projected the dispute of the Brazilian Championship, highlighted the need for reinforcements, the renewal of left-back Fabrizio Angileri, the importance of Matheuzinho and Matheus Bidu, the rise of André Luiz, the midfield composition with Rodrigo Garro and Breno Bidon, among other topics.

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Photo: Rodrigo Coca/Agência Corinthians

Check out below the answers from Corinthians coach Dorival Júnior in the press conference:

Recalls arrival at the club, season planning, and need for reinforcements

“Well, first, it was a situation that was bothering all of us, because every week the first headline was always something related to Corinthians, sometimes in a negative or even pejorative way. Anyway, that was really bothering all of us. I think, one way or another, we started to change this pattern of behavior that had existed, and I think that was an important fact. What I always try to do is to convey to the fans what is correct, as clearly as possible. I think we have to understand that we are still in the process of building our group, our squad. We do not have a complete squad. We need more players, to improve and qualify our group. I think that when you have a good team, you sometimes fight for trophies.”

“When you have a great squad, you can put yourself in a position to fight for something bigger, for championships. And I think this is the moment when Corinthians has to define itself in this regard. Either we take a slightly bigger step, or we maintain this work. After all, it’s not simple to build a squad; today we have 12, 13 players from the youth categories, which is the kind of work I like to do, to develop. I think I have a lot of patience with this kind of situation, and it was with these players that we relied on last year, in the most complicated and difficult moments, and they gave us a good response. What we need now is a step just as important as maintaining and valuing these young players. But above all, we also need a few more elements that can reinforce and improve our team's capacity.”

Projection for the 2026 Brazilian Championship

“That’s exactly why I said earlier that if we are not attentive, if we don’t improve, if we don’t focus on improving our group, you will run risks, yes, because it is a very dangerous championship, a very complicated championship. The Paulista Championship itself shows this, so we can’t think that things are settled and that 2026 will be better than 2025. No, that’s an illusion. Football is very dynamic and must always be monitored in a way that you don’t lose the paths you need to find to reach your objectives, and we have the obligation to stay alert, wanting to improve at all times.”

“Seeking everything that can be done inside and around the training center so that the demands, which will be even greater this year, can also fit within what is within our reach, so that we can deliver something a little better to the fans. I think we have to keep working this way, insisting, wanting to show at all times the shortcomings and needs we have so that, God willing, in the future we have an even stronger group able to fight for something bigger and better.”

Brazilian calendar increasingly tight

“Look, I think it’s a difficult calendar for everyone. It’s not comfortable, it’s not a calm situation. We’ve already had, practically, right after the Ponte Preta game, which was already a tough game, three more classics: RB Bragantino, then Santos, São Paulo, and now Palmeiras. The championship is demanding a lot from the teams that went a little further in last year’s Brazilian Championship. It’s been difficult to manage all this, because of the needs of one match and, right after, with the Brasileirão practically underway. So, we are learning to live with a new situation. That’s the reality.”

“That’s why I say we need a slightly more complete squad, a bit more filled out so that we can have the conditions to compete on equal terms with other teams. We can’t be left behind. We have to make a decision from now on, where we want to get. We will continue working regardless of what happens with all the players here, trying to value and improve, qualifying each one’s individual ability, so that collectively we gain in some way.”

How do you see the possibility of leaving a legacy at Corinthians?

“Look, I never really planned my life much. I’m very honest with you, and I hear a lot about planning and career development. I never did that. I always let things happen. I tried to prepare myself as much as possible, studied in every way. We took a lot of hits day by day, in our training, because we never had a specific course for a certain function. That never existed. What I understood is that, being a physical education teacher, you would be fit to be a football coach in the future, because at that time I didn’t even know if I would be a professional athlete, still in that transition between youth and professional at Ferroviária de Araraquara. So, I tried to prepare myself a lot and went to study physical education, which was a course that would give me the possibility, if I couldn’t be an athlete, to maybe be part of a technical staff, be a fitness coach, an assistant, or something like that. At the time, there wasn’t even the role of assistant coach, but I wanted to be part of a football technical staff. And, thank God, my career was directed, led to the athlete side. After 19 years as an athlete, I had the opportunity to be a coach, a little before that, I spent almost a year as football executive at Figueirense. So, for me, it was an interesting experience, a preparation throughout this period.”

“In the last five or six years, I paid a lot of attention to my coaches’ reactions, what they did, what the squad liked or didn’t like. I wrote down training sessions, improved some training sessions in my view, and with that, I started already debuting at a Série A club, which was Figueirense. So, for me, it was a very important step and I believe I built a career that gave me a huge return in terms of knowledge and understanding. This preparation was fundamental for me to develop as a professional, to manage most Brazilian clubs, and that, for me, is a pleasure, a satisfaction. I think the number of championships is important, but it’s not the main thing. For me, the recognition from athletes, as happened in the last game, practically 12, 14 Flamengo players coming to greet me, players who were under my management at some point. Filipe Luís was a player I launched. Today, he’s a football coach, so all this has a much greater value for us, perhaps, than a simple achievement. I value all of them a lot, I praise them a lot, but only up to a certain point. After the game, I was already starting to think about what we would do during the week. That’s how our life is. It seems like it’s just a momentary relief from what’s happening. It’s not easy, it’s not simple.”

Criteria for monitoring athletes and signings at Corinthians

“We are using a lot of creativity, right? Because we don’t have a very favorable situation right now to seek investments, as many teams are achieving today in the country. So, we have to use creativity and we try to filter as much as possible all the information about all the athletes. We have a specialized team for this within the club, which does a first approval. Then, they pass the names to us. Then, we take it to our analysis team, which works with us daily, because these people have a slightly better notion of the characteristics of the athlete we need for certain roles.”

“From there, with approval, the names are brought to me, Marcelo, and then we finalize the conditions, looking at maybe three or four names, which would be more advisable, more viable at the moment, the best conditions, technically, tactically, anyway. And after a final meeting, we reach a certain name. That’s how we’ve been doing it. All the names go through the scrutiny of several people so that we can try to make as few mistakes as possible, since we don’t have that possibility right now. It can happen, a player doesn’t come with a guarantee certificate, but it’s a fact that you have to try to make as few mistakes as possible to try to have the best possible team in conditions.”

Analysis of the Supercopa do Brasil win over Flamengo

“Look, I think it was a very interesting game, not only from Corinthians but also from Flamengo. The changes that happened, the tactical shifts that occurred during the match were always a challenge for us to try to anticipate an idea that Filipe was putting in or he, in the same way, doing the same against us. I think the main thing is that we had interesting variations, changes in the behavior of certain players. We did, yes, a bit more individualized marking, taking a big risk, because we left practically three players against three Flamengo attackers, who are excellent attackers. But I think our team was very determined, knowing everything that could happen. I think a mistake already prompted a correction right after. I think the first half was very much about that, ending the first half with that set piece, exhaustively rehearsed, very well worked, very well thought out, repeated countless times so that we could achieve this result. I think there were several situations.”

“We have a team that gathers all possible data from each team. We have frequently changed the way we play, the way we are on the field, the behaviors of some players, executing various functions. For example, in the last game, Raniele was sometimes a third defender, sometimes a midfielder, sometimes he moved out wide as if he were an attacking midfielder. So, what we seek is precisely this: to give the players as many resources as possible so that they can find their best conditions on the field. They are the ones who will decide the matches; we have to give them every possible condition, present everything within our reach, so that we can keep improving. And there were very important games in the Copa do Brasil, where we eliminated powerful opponents who were already a bit ahead of us in their process. Results that were fundamental, very important, and I think all this greatly enhances the achievements we had. They were knockout games, but very complicated, difficult, and demanded a lot tactically. I am sure, both from our side and from our opponents. That’s why I think these games could be discussed a bit more, for everything they presented over 180 minutes, this last one, 90 minutes.”

Preparation for the Derby against Palmeiras in the Paulistão, in Itaquera, this weekend

“We have no other way. We can’t finish a month playing with just one team, with very few changes. So, we have to make some decisions, and these decisions depend on the importance of each match and the needs we have. What we need is to be on the field with players in the best condition, and two and a half days later you’re playing another very important match, another classic. Do you now understand why we need a more complete, more filled-out squad? It’s precisely so that at the moment of changes, our level, our rhythm, is maintained. I think that’s the goal. Like the game we played in Rio Claro, a very tough, hard-fought game, but still, with Corinthians taking the initiative most of the time. I think that’s the goal we want.”

Does it bother you never to have won the Brasileirão in the points system in your career; recalls work at other clubs

“No, it’s not something that bothers me, but naturally we all always want results. I had two runner-up finishes in the Brazilian Championship. One taking Flamengo in seventh place and a second starting with Santos, fighting until the last rounds, with Palmeiras and Flamengo, losing players during the two most important months of the year, which were July and August, to the Olympic team in 2016, which were Zeca, Thiago Maia, and Lucas Lima. And to the National Team, which went to play the Copa América Centenario in the United States, three more players, Ricardo Oliveira, Lucas Lima, and Gabriel, Gabigol, during the competition. Right after, when they returned, after two months away, we lost Gabriel, sold to Inter Milan, and Gustavo Henrique, who is here, suffered a very serious knee injury, along with Luiz Felipe, who was the other player on our team. And even so, selling players, we finished as runners-up in the Brazilian Championship that year. So, whenever I had quality teams in my hands, I also know the paths, I know how to get there.”

“Now, most of the time, I had teams being built or I took over big teams that were in the relegation zone. In 2022, when I took Flamengo, also in the Brazilian Championship, we were in 16th and went up to second place until a certain point when things got tight and I had to focus more on the cups, which were the Libertadores and the Copa do Brasil. So, give me a group in good condition and I will also fight for good things, I have no doubt about that. We have a group that is proving strong, and if we get a few more elements to reinforce the needs we have already pointed out, I have no doubt that we could have a very different championship. But for that, you need to rebuild quickly. The championship is already underway, things are already happening, teams are already assembled, and all the teams have signed a lot, will be much stronger, much more than last year. That’s why we need to pay much more attention.”

Have Corinthians’ recent achievements (Copa do Brasil and Supercopa) helped overcome frustrations with the Brazilian National Team?

“So, first I want to make one thing clear about the national team: there was never any resentment, never in any sense, taking it that way. But naturally, it generated a lot of doubts on my part about my work in general, because the criticism was very harsh, in my opinion, deconstructing the work of an entire career. It’s funny that today our results are very close to Professor Ancelotti’s. The percentage is practically the same. We had sixteen matches, he’s now reaching his eighth match, if I’m not mistaken, with practically similar numbers. The understanding of the work that was being done at that time was very poorly viewed in the way it happened. That’s the only thing I regret. I had no doubt that we would do a job aiming for the World Cup, which is what I pointed out and that it would give us results, because we would reach the World Cup with a team already with almost two and a half years of growth, evolution, in a process that every team needs to go through. No one skips steps in football. But I noticed a widespread impatience, not to use other terms, which caused me a very uncomfortable situation, including from former athletes, colleagues with whom I always had a very clear, clean, and, on my part, very loyal relationship, which did not exist on the part of many of these professionals, not all, but many, understanding the moment the CBF was going through, very troubled, very difficult, with many challenges.”

“So, the environment was not totally favorable for developing a job, and even so, we were there, confident in what could happen in the future because of everything that was being planted, I always did work in that sense. And in knockout competitions, or a World Cup, I also know how to work. I have a sense of what it is. I think the proof is in the results we are having, and they were not with teams that were favorites. When I arrived here, we were not favorites. When I arrived at São Paulo, we were never favorites. When I arrived at Ceará, we were never the favorite team. Flamengo itself was in general doubt and, suddenly, when the two competitions we won ended, it was the best team in Brazil and anyone could have done that kind of work. Those were the comments made. So, people try to belittle. I don’t care about that. Honestly, I always try to look ahead in my life and I am very grateful to God for everything I received as an athlete, having the opportunity to be a mascot at Ferroviária de Araraquara, accompanying great players, playing against great players, playing 19 years of my life, and now, with 24 years as a coach, so for me, I’ve been through everything you can imagine in our country, and even so I survived. So, I am a survivor, a passenger of agony, but I am still whole and able to continue developing everything I prepared myself to do. And I will continue, you can be sure of that, because it’s in my life, it’s in my blood. I prepared myself a lot and I will not let myself be carried away by situations. I think people need to pay a lot of attention to those who are by their side. The people who guide you at all times, if one day a criticism comes from that person, take it a seriously, because those people want your good. The rest, I’m sorry, could create much more than penalize and criticize. I think creation is much harder, that’s why people limit themselves. So, they prefer to criticize. It’s much simpler, but in terms of production, it’s almost zero. To those people, I can only thank them for strengthening and helping me grow.”

Renewal of Fabrizio Angileri

“I think the group knows him well, there’s no secret. I, as coach, the same way. Now it’s natural; he will have to go through the necessary processes so that, if it happens, everything is finalized. It’s well advanced, but not yet resolved. If it happens, it’s natural. He will be very well received and will have the necessary time to integrate in the best possible way.”

Praise for young André Luiz, Son of Terrão

“He’s a player with a lot of qualities. When we saw him playing here, on this field behind us, he was still a boy coming back from an injury; I didn’t know him. I noticed some interesting characteristics. All these players were very well prepared. We didn’t just bring them in and put them there without preparation. All of them went through at least 3 months of preparation. The frameworks being developed with all of them are so we can correct some behaviors, improve some conditions that we observed within what we think is ideal, trying to launch them at the right and appropriate moment. André was coming in little by little, suddenly, he himself is finding a path and is giving us confidence. It’s up to us now to manage the opportunities he has so that we can always have him at his best.”

“And in a process of evolution. Going back to this word legacy, in a few months, I think Corinthians should prepare to know who we are going to sell and not in a different way, where clubs come here and want, suddenly, this or that player. No, tomorrow we are willing to sell a certain player, because he is already prepared, he has already delivered technically and now he follows his path, giving a different kind of return to our club. So, I think this is a second moment we have to reach in the future so we can solidify these changes that happen within our club.”

Importance of Lucas Silvestre, his son and assistant coach, in his career and daily life at Corinthians

“He’s been with me since 2010, since I left Santos for Atlético Mineiro. He’s been evolving, a very clear evolution. Even before that, he was already working as a technical observer. All our future opponents, he would observe on the day of the previous match we had in all the teams I was at. From the moment he joined our staff, I noticed a very fast development in him. Today, he is practically the one who executes all the functions within my team. He is responsible for assembling and developing the training sessions. We have a very well-composed team, with five analysts who strengthen our work at all times, seeking the smallest data from all our opponents. That’s why I say our game plan, each round, changes completely, both offensively and defensively. It depends a lot on what the opponent presents and the opponent is very well studied.”

“I think this has brought us very important details, corrections that we provoke and provide so that the players can be a bit more secure in each match, knowing at least who they will be playing against. All this is due to the organization of our work team, which is led by him. The field work is divided between Lucas and Pedro. I’m always paying attention to one part of the field or another. The work is not always on the same field. So, sometimes, I’m moving between one field and another. Usually, Pedro is with the defensive system, Lucas with the offensive system. Then, in integration, Lucas takes care. Pedro, a bit more attention to set pieces and defensive behaviors that need to be corrected. We work more or less in this way. We still have João and Gui, who were with us in previous teams and the Brazilian National Team, as well as those who are part of the Corinthians staff, who were also integrated. For example, we have a friend who had worked with us at São Paulo, so he already knew our work system and is here with us. And, suddenly, he adds a lot because, already knowing, he knew the development of what we wanted. Because after a training session now, in the morning, we stay here until eight at night, practically studying the training, what was done, studying opponents, finding some ways so that tomorrow, in the final video, we can show even more positive things so that the players are aware of all possible movements of the opposing team or teams. So, in general, he took on the daily context, the practice, so that I can move through all sectors and be able to solve more specific problems and participate in training as a whole, since the attention is always a bit divided between the construction or defensive phases of our team.”

Importance of fullbacks Matheuzinho and Matheus Bidu in Corinthians’ tactical scheme

“Look, I think they are very promising players who deserve, perhaps, some attention so that in the future, I don’t know when, they may be fighting for a possibility. I’m sure they are being observed for what they have been delivering. Bidu has already had a very good championship in my opinion, from the middle of last year on. Standing out, a purely technical player, very focused on his commitments and in a very interesting development process. Matheuzinho has always been a very consistent player in every sense. When we arrived here, we didn’t have fast players. Our speed was on the flanks, so our team focused a lot on playing inside, so that we could have the flanks explored by our fullbacks.”

“I think that was a point we noticed right at the beginning. We tried to value as much as possible the support play of the fullbacks so that we could have a slightly faster outlet, precisely on the flanks, not having those players more inside. I think that was a very positive point. It gave us not only the ability for very strong marking, but above all a slightly faster outlet and ended up giving us very positive resources so that we could have new options when we needed a slightly faster outlet than what naturally happened inside, when the team starts to have a different behavior to attack the opponent.”

How do you see the future of Lucas Silvestre – chances of being a head coach?

“I’m very calm about that because I think he was prepared on the field. His preparation wasn’t just in observations, reading, or anything like that, quite the opposite, the preparation was day to day. Surely, he will have a path maybe even smoother than I had in my career. I hope that happens, that he can be much better than I have been so far. I think he’s prepared for that. It’s all a matter of time and opportunity. Just so you have an idea, in the last five clubs we’ve been at, he had three offers to stay at the club as head coach when I left. So, I think that’s already a path showing him that, soon, he’ll have to make a decision. I don’t know if at the end of my career or still ongoing, we never know. But I hope it happens at the right time, when he feels more and more prepared to take the next step.”

How do you think you’ll be remembered by the fans?

“That’s difficult. I don’t know. Look, it’s funny, but I meet all kinds of fans and I don’t stop going to a mall, a store, because of my position, whether I’m losing or winning. And I always get very positive feedback from all the clubs I’ve been at. ‘Hey, Dorival, it’s time to come back here and there and so on.’ I think that’s cool, interesting. In general, the behavior is very positive. I hope I can also leave a story like that here. But much because of my work and not just results. That’s what I see. I feel it’s time for us to start evaluating football by the work and not just by results. Because there are many variables from one team to another. And the terms of comparison are the same. Sunday, if we hadn’t won the game against Flamengo, we would be heavily questioned for one reason or another.”

“But do we have the same conditions as Flamengo at this moment, in the club environment, in the club experience? Maybe not right now. But we have the obligation to prepare ourselves and correct everything that was happening here so that one day we can be, as we have been, at the same level as all these teams. And Corinthians will achieve that goal, I have no doubt about it. Because it is doing very serious work in all sectors of the club. And I think that’s what we need. That’s why our steps here, in terms of signings, have to be very well measured so that we don’t go beyond and don’t exceed the possibilities the club presents to us. But recognition, I think, is for the work and not just for one result or another that may or may not happen.”

Can Breno Bidon and Rodrigo Garro play together at Corinthians?

“I saw this same question when I arrived at Flamengo about Gabigol and Pedro. So, it’s the same answer I give you. Great players understand each other. Don’t worry. They are midfielders and I can play with two midfielders. They are forwards and I can play with two or three forwards. For me, it doesn’t matter. Great players find each other. They have the ability and were not responsible for either the 1-0 or the 1-2. The team was responsible. So, for me, there’s no problem. And no one wants to see Garro and Bidon together, producing for our team, more than I do. It’s all a matter of time. Garro is evolving, growing, getting back to his best 2024 form. I’m sure that will happen. So, it’s all a matter of time for us to have this player who was decisive, especially when he arrived, when he was considered the best midfielder in Brazilian football, deservedly.”

Praise for the Faithful Fans

“It just confirmed what I already expected: the spectacle the fans provide and have been providing for the last 30, 40 years. The Corinthians fans are what I saw in this movement of fans going to Brasília, almost 200 buses from the organized groups. But also those who went by van, buggy, hitchhiking, making crazy trips, selling cars to be able to go. Anyway, the effort these people made, that moved all of us. On the bus, we were following the movements that were happening. And I even said yesterday, I think in one of the interviews I gave. When they finished the Poró-Popó, we could have closed the stadium, everyone left, paid a new ticket, and had the show again. Because what they did until that moment was impressive. So, I think being able to live alongside these fans today is a remarkable fact for any professional. And I’m very happy to be part of a moment like this. Because what I’ve seen there moves everyone. It’s something very different.”

How much does the issue with José Martínez in Venezuela hinder squad rotation?

“It hinders a lot because he is a player who is part of a squad that is thin. Today, we have one change for midfield. In a slightly more defensive role, just one change. So, we have to be aware of that. If there are no signings, I will keep trying to give my best, doing what I did last year. Results, we can’t manage; there’s no way. Now, we will keep working, giving our all as we did. I don’t know what results we’ll deliver, because we won’t always have the best players available. The Corinthians team, together, is strong. As happened last year, when we lost throughout the season, sometimes 10, sometimes 11, sometimes even more players, we were very depleted, and a lot of pressure was put on the backs of kids, young talents who were practically just being launched. So, we have to be aware of all this. In a long championship, you need a strong squad. Sometimes, you win trophies in another way. It doesn’t always happen.”

“First, it’s important because he’s in our squad. Second, something like this shouldn’t have happened. We all have problems. I also have a passport that’s about to expire now. I think I have six more months left. So, I have to renew it. That should have happened before. That’s a second point. Third, something happened that no one expected, the intervention in his country. So, we have to try to understand that. Fourth. When he arrives, we’ll see the explanations he’ll have and the decisions that will be made by the board and the coaching staff.”

How fundamental is Memphis Depay and does the Supercopa title bring peace of mind?

“I think the role of an athlete is very important. Who has greatness in their heart, not just sporting greatness, to be able to share experiences with youth players who are just starting and see them as a reference. I think this is very positive. Until today, it gave me relative peace. Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, from tomorrow on, forget it (laughs). What’s past is gone. There’s no going back. What we have to do now is build a new story. We have no other way. In football, you don’t live off what you’ve already done. You live off what you can do ahead. So, for me… It already started on Monday. Or rather, Sunday night, on the flight, I was already thinking about what to do on Monday.”

Financial disparity between some clubs in the Brasileirão

“Our leagues, and this is to the credit of the clubs that prepared in advance, and today live in a situation where a player can be bought from European football. How long has it been since that happened? A player… not one who is already planning a return, on the contrary, a player who was in the spotlight and could even be sold internally. And this player is brought back by a Brazilian club. This is a highly positive point and we have to recognize it. Because they prepared to live a moment like this. Now, in terms of competition, I have no doubt that we are drawing a similar situation. This was already said before. That’s why the clubs that got ahead, by merit, by the perception they had, are naturally ahead and will have a greater chance of staying in that position. The others will have to work hard to establish themselves, find regularity. And from there, yes, have a new path. It won’t be easy, it won’t be simple. Eventually, it will happen in a Brazilian competition, a less prominent team, that is struggling, manages to get there, but it won’t always happen. In practice, and understanding football as we have observed for many years, the big teams, the established teams with financial regularity, will naturally have a big advantage, I repeat, for what they produced, for what they did. For having gotten ahead of the other teams, today they can naturally be ahead of all.”

Managing expectations within the Corinthians squad

“I think I make decisions from the moment I wake up, practically. And my job requires that. Many times I will take a player out, and suddenly he thinks he doesn’t deserve to leave, that he’s having a good moment, but for one reason or another, it will happen. It’s not a demerit for anyone. It’s not disrespect, it doesn’t diminish anyone’s career. André is a guy who is still respected, was champion the other day of the Copa do Brasil, didn’t play this match because of the characteristics and what the game required. The same happened with Garro. But they are important players. Suddenly, tomorrow, they may be on the field. We have to be careful and always have worthy loyalty to make the player keep believing in what you say. I’ve always acted this way. So, I won’t change. I try to be very honest and correct with my players, because tomorrow these are the players who will be giving us a response. And you can be sure that Garro and André will continue to be as important as they always were to our group, our team, and our fans.”

Contract with Corinthians until the end of the year

“Look, no, I think in football you can’t think far ahead. You have to think about February now. I’ve always worked this way. Even our contracts should be weekly. Football coaches have no other way. I have to think about the week. I’m sure if anything negative happens Thursday and Sunday, you’d be asking me a different kind of question. I have no doubt about that. I can never think far ahead.”

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