Corinthians eye better derby record at Neo Química Arena in 2026 | OneFootball

Corinthians will face an important derby this Sunday. At 4 p.m., Timão hosts Santos at Neo Química Arena in a match valid for the 25th round of the Brazilian Championship. In addition to the three points, the team is looking to improve its record against its main rivals at Itaquera this season.

So far, Corinthians have played four derbies at home in 2026, considering matches against São Paulo and Palmeiras in the Paulista Championship and the Brasileirão. The record stands at one win, two draws, and one loss, with a 41.67% success rate. In the four games, Timão scored four times and also conceded four goals. That means the average is exactly one goal scored and one conceded per match.

Photo: Rodrigo Coca/Ag. Corinthians

The derby season at Neo Química Arena began on January 18. In the first phase of the Paulistão, Corinthians and São Paulo drew 1-1. Tapia gave the rival the lead, but Breno Bidon appeared late in the Majestoso to prevent an Alvinegro defeat.

The first setback came a few weeks later. On February 8, again in the state championship, Corinthians faced Palmeiras and lost 1-0. Flaco López scored the only goal of the Dérbi, which was also marked by a missed penalty from Memphis Depay.

The Dutch forward slipped at the moment of the strike and ended up sending the ball wide, wasting the chance to find the net.

On April 12, Corinthians faced Palmeiras again at their arena, this time in the Brazilian Championship. The team coached by Fernando Diniz managed to grind out a goalless draw in a very difficult match.

Timão played a good part of that Dérbi with nine men on the field. André Luiz was sent off after an obscene gesture, while Matheuzinho also received a red card.

Corinthians’ only derby win at Neo Química Arena in 2026 came in the following match. On May 10, in the Brasileirão, Timão beat São Paulo 3-2. Matheuzinho, Raniele, and Breno Bidon scored for the home side, while Luciano and Matheuzinho, with an own goal, scored for São Paulo.

Despite the uneven performances this year, Corinthians’ overall history in derbies at Neo Química Arena is positive. Since the stadium opened in 2014, there have been 70 matches against their main rivals, with 34 wins, 26 draws, and only 10 losses. The historical success rate is 61%.

This Sunday’s clash will be only the third Clássico Alvinegro played by Corinthians in 2026 and the first one with Timão as the home side. The previous two meetings took place at Vila Belmiro.

The first was on January 22, in the Campeonato Paulista qualifying stage. The second took place on March 15, in the first half of the Brasileirão season. On both occasions, Santos and Corinthians drew 1-1.

Santos, meanwhile, have already played twice at Neo Química Arena this season. The first visit came on January 25, when the club beat Red Bull Bragantino 2-0 in the Paulista Championship.

On that occasion, Corinthians had made the stadium available to Santos. The move was part of a kind of payback for Timão’s use of Vila Belmiro in early February, when the club moved its Brazilian Championship match against Bahia to Santos.

Despite the change of venue, Corinthians ended up losing to Bahia 2-1. The decision to play in Baixada Santista, however, was mainly intended to give the squad a longer recovery period before the Supercopa do Brasil.

The strategy paid off in the following competition. Corinthians beat Flamengo 2-0 and won the Supercopa do Brasil title.

Santos’ second trip to Neo Química Arena in 2026 ended in a negative result for the visiting club. On May 17, in the Brasileirão, Coritiba beat Peixe 3-0 at Corinthians’ stadium.

The last meeting between Corinthians and Santos at the People’s House took place on May 18, 2025, also in the Brazilian Championship. In that match, Timão came out on top 1-0, with Yuri Alberto scoring the winning goal.

Besides trying to maintain their historical advantage at home, Corinthians head into the derby under pressure because of the need to respond in the Brasileirão. The team is coming off two straight defeats and currently sits in 10th place with 32 points.

A win over Santos could move Timão up the table and see them finish the round in 8th place.

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