Corinthians chief backs squad after Copa do Brasil exit, talks Depay | OneFootball

Late this Monday afternoon (10), during an event at the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) regarding the approval of new rules for the sport in the country, Corinthians executive Marcelo Paz gave an interview to the press and was once again asked about the future of forward Memphis Depay.

The No. 10’s contract expired on July 31 and, at the moment, the parties have a deal in principle for him to stay. However, Corinthians is still awaiting approval from its sponsors to help pay the player’s wages under the new contract, which is expected to run through December 2028.

Photo: Rodrigo Coca/Agência Corinthians

It is worth noting that the club from Parque São Jorge has a debt of more than R$40 million related to bonuses for targets achieved in the previous contract. Under the new agreement, that amount is expected to be paid in four semiannual installments starting in February 2027. Memphis has already agreed to lower his salary demands and adjust to the club’s financial reality. In recent weeks, both sides have been exchanging different proposals.

In the most recent offer presented by the Dutchman, part of the compensation would be tied to commercial initiatives developed in partnership with Corinthians. The proposal also includes performance bonuses at amounts lower than those established in the previous contract. It is worth noting that, even with three transfer bans in effect – two from FIFA and one from the CBF – Corinthians can register the player’s new contract, since this is not a signing but rather an extension of his current deal.

“He is not playing yet because his contract has not been renewed yet. It is quite advanced, but it is a complex contract involving many issues. There is a debt, there are commercial matters, there is the contract itself. And Corinthians is being very careful to make it a safe contract, legally airtight, so that his possible stay, which I believe in and hope happens, can be very secure for the club. I’m not going to go into the terms, because that gets into negotiation details, strategy.”

“I’m handling this naturally. The football department wants this resolved as soon as possible. We need Memphis on the field, cleared to play, but we understand that there is a legal and technical process to be decided, and we respect that. We in the football department hope that, as soon as possible, he can be available to help us on the field,” he said.

Signed in September 2024 after not having his deal renewed by Atlético de Madrid of Spain, Memphis Depay arrived at Corinthians and immediately played a key role in the team’s surge in the previous Brazilian Championship campaign (from the relegation zone to the Libertadores qualifying stage), scoring seven goals and providing one assist in 11 matches in the national tournament.

Last season and at the start of this one, he was decisive in the club’s titles in the Paulista Championship (2025), Copa do Brasil (2025), and Supercopa do Brasil (2026), totaling two assists in those finals and playing an important role in the earlier knockout rounds. In a Corinthians shirt, he has 20 goals and 15 assists in 79 matches – 40 wins, 18 draws, and 21 losses – a 58.23% success rate.

Later, the Corinthians executive emphasized his confidence in the team even after its elimination in the round of 16 of the 2026 Copa do Brasil against Internacional, and cited the quality of the squad combined with the work of coach Fernando Diniz since his arrival in the first week of April. After the change in charge, Timão recorded 12 wins, seven draws, and four losses – 62% of the points won – with 29 goals scored and 17 conceded.

He then looked ahead to the rest of the season, with the Brazilian Championship and the round of 16 of the Conmebol Libertadores still to come. This Thursday (13), at 9:30 p.m. Brasília time, Timão will visit Rosario Central of Argentina for the first leg of the international competition’s knockout tie.

“We didn’t want this, it wasn’t what we hoped for. I think in both games Corinthians was superior in terms of possession and shots, but not on the scoreboard. So I often say this: internally, I said this and I’ll repeat it here for you, internally we didn’t manage to go through, but we have to keep playing this way, attacking, having possession, taking more shots, going for the goal, fighting, as in the second game, the team ran a lot, gave a lot, and I think this is how you win games and win championships. We didn’t manage it against Inter, they were efficient with their strategy, congratulations to Inter for advancing. For us, it’s a lesson. I think in Porto Alegre we had a few moments of, let’s say, lack of concentration that resulted in the elimination; the two goals we conceded came in a short span of time, and that is already a lesson for the game against Rosario, now away from home in similar conditions to that knockout match, and it cannot happen again, but the team’s overall attitude was right.”

“I also have to praise even more the team that was eliminated on Thursday and then went to Bragança on Sunday, fielded the same lineup and won the game, against a difficult team that had not lost for more than 10 rounds; Bragança had not lost, counting the friendly in the middle of the cup period. So the squad has already reacted, and that is what we expect. Since Diniz arrived, there have been 12 wins, a high success rate. The team has only grown, I think the club is on the rise, it is in a strong position in the league today, and that is what we have to hold on to. We went out against Inter, but maybe that can be good later on, if we can keep advancing in the Libertadores, at some point we will have a break in the schedule to recover players, to train, to be very strong in the two competitions we still have left. In other words, confidence in the team.”

Marcelo Paz concluded by once again speaking about the work being done by the current coaching staff: “Diniz is very good. We know the club is going through problems, that’s obvious, he said that yesterday in the press conference and it’s part of it. When I arrived here, I already knew about those problems. When he arrived, he knew about those problems too, and even so he has managed to get performances out of the players. And I want to highlight not only Diniz but also the players; this is a very focused group, a group that truly values the Corinthians shirt. I remember when I arrived here at the beginning of the year, people would say things like, sometimes they would say: ‘this is a group that picks and chooses games.’

“None of that. The players are giving everything, in every match they are doing their utmost, honoring the shirt, and they have a very high success rate since Diniz arrived, and I think that deserves praise. It is a club that, with all its difficulties, remains huge, keeps performing, and as for the players, I am very proud to work with them. They are competent, qualified, focused men who are giving their maximum for Corinthians.”

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