Corinthians confirm midfielder out for away trip to RB Bragantino | OneFootball

On the afternoon of this Sunday (9), at 6:30 p.m. (Brasília time), Corinthians will visit Red Bull Bragantino at Estádio Cícero de Souza Marques, in Atibaia, São Paulo, in a match valid for the 22nd round of the 2026 Brazilian Championship. At the moment, Timão sit in ninth place with 29 points — seven wins, eight draws, and six defeats — with 22 goals scored and 20 conceded.

For the match, Corinthians confirmed the absence of defensive midfielder André Luiz, who, according to the club’s communications department, suffered a grade 2 muscle injury in the back of his right thigh. The youngster felt discomfort in the area during the match against Internacional last Thursday (6), in Itaquera, in the second leg of the Copa do Brasil round of 16. He missed Alvinegro’s last two training sessions before tonight’s clash.

Photo: Rodrigo Coca/Agência Corinthians

For injuries of this type, the estimated recovery time is usually four to eight weeks. As a result, André is expected to miss the match against Rosario Central of Argentina, away from home, next Thursday (13), at 9:30 p.m. (Brasília time), in the first leg of the 2026 Conmebol Libertadores round of 16.

André Luiz earned his place in Corinthians’ first team at the start of the second half of 2025, when coach Dorival Júnior, who was in charge of the team at the time, had to rely even more on the youth academy, since Timão had been punished with a transfer ban by FIFA and could not register players.

Gradually, he became one of the team’s pillars, standing out mainly for his physical strength and ability to get into the box to finish. In total, he has seven goals and two assists in 47 matches (31 as a starter), with 19 wins, 17 draws, and 11 defeats — a 52.5% success rate — and was part of the title-winning squads in the Copa do Brasil (2025) and Supercopa do Brasil (2026), against Vasco da Gama and Flamengo, respectively.

In recent months, he has been monitored by clubs in Europe, especially in Italian football — Milan and Juventus. At the start of this year, he came close to joining the Rossoneri, but the move did not happen after a change of direction by the board. In the coming weeks, he could receive an offer from the Vecchia Signora. In 2026, he is Timão’s joint second-highest scorer alongside center-back Gustavo Henrique, with five goals in 35 matches.

Before being promoted to Corinthians’ first team in the middle of last year, André Luiz missed the entire first half of the season, including the Copa São Paulo, because of a knee injury. In Corinthians’ youth ranks, at Under-17 and Under-20 level, he has 11 goals in 80 matches — 41 wins, 15 draws, and 24 defeats. His main title in Timão’s youth setup was the 2023 Paulista Under-17 Championship, against São Paulo, at Fazendinha, in a team that also featured Luiz Gustavo Bahia, Dieguinho, and Gui Negão — the latter two now André’s teammates in the first team.

His contract with Corinthians runs until December 2029 and includes an international release clause of 100 million euros (nearly R$ 600 million).

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