Corinthians exit ends Fernando Diniz's unbeaten Libertadores run | OneFootball

Corinthians’ elimination by Estudiantes-ARG last Wednesday (16) did not only bring the club’s Conmebol Libertadores campaign to an end. The 1-0 defeat at Neo Química Arena also ended Fernando Diniz’s run of ten unbeaten knockout matches in the continental competition.

Before the clash in Itaquera, the coach had recorded six wins and four draws in ten consecutive knockout matches, according to a survey by Sofascore. The first defeat in this stretch came precisely in the match that was worth a place in the 2026 Libertadores semifinals.

Photo: Rodrigo Coca / Corinthians Agency

With the new result, Diniz now has six wins, four draws, and one defeat in his last 11 Libertadores knockout matches, with a 66.7% points rate.

Run ends against Estudiantes

The unbeaten streak had actually been extended against Estudiantes themselves. In the first leg of the quarterfinals, played in La Plata on September 9, Corinthians went behind but found a 1-1 equalizer in the second half through Kaio César.

That result left the tie completely open for São Paulo. A win for either team would mean direct qualification, while another draw would send the contest to a penalty shootout.

At Neo Química Arena, Corinthians and Estudiantes played out a balanced match with few clear chances. The score remained goalless until the 42nd minute of the second half, when Alexis Castro scored for the Argentinians.

Timão still had one last chance to stay alive in the Libertadores. In stoppage time, after a VAR review, the referee awarded a penalty for a handball by Tomás Palacios. Memphis Depay took the kick, but sent it over the bar.

The 1-0 defeat closed the tie at 2-1 for Estudiantes on aggregate and simultaneously ended Corinthians’ campaign and Diniz’s unbeaten run in Libertadores knockout ties.

Diniz’s numbers suffer their first negative change

Before the decisive match, the figures presented by Sofascore showed a run of ten unbeaten knockout matches for the coach in the tournament. During that span, his teams had scored 16 goals and conceded seven.

The survey also pointed to 18 big chances created, an average of 54.9% possession, and a ratio of 5.8 shots for every goal scored. On the other side, opponents needed an average of 18.6 shots to find the net.

With the defeat to Estudiantes, the results record goes from six wins and four draws in ten matches to six wins, four draws, and one loss in 11 matches. The rate, which had previously been 73.3%, dropped to 66.7%.

Corinthians also lose their unbeaten run in the 2026 knockout stage

Fernando Diniz’s mark went hand in hand with another run built by Corinthians themselves. Until facing Estudiantes at Neo Química Arena, Timão had not lost since the start of the knockout stage of this Libertadores edition.

In the round of 16, the team drew 0-0 with Rosario Central-ARG at Gigante de Arroyito. In the return leg, in São Paulo, they won 1-0, with a goal by Breno Bidon, and advanced to the quarterfinals.

Against Estudiantes, the 1-1 draw in Argentina extended the run to three unbeaten knockout matches. The fourth match, however, brought that streak to an end.

Look back at Corinthians’ knockout matches in the 2026 Libertadores:

Thus, Corinthians ended their continental knockout-stage campaign with one win, two draws, and one defeat in four matches, in addition to two goals scored and two conceded.

The quarterfinal exit also keeps the club away from a Libertadores semifinal. The last time Corinthians were among the top four teams in South America was in 2012, the year they won the tournament unbeaten.

Now, Fernando Diniz and the squad turn their full attention to the Brazilian Championship. Their next match takes place on Sunday (20), at 4 p.m. (Brasília time), against Fluminense at Neo Química Arena, in the 28th round.

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