Corinthians miss chance to close on G5 after defeat to Cruzeiro | OneFootball

Throughout the night this Sunday (16), Corinthians took the field to face Cruzeiro at Neo Química Arena in a match for the 23rd round of the 2026 Brazilian Championship and ended up losing 2-1. Center-back Gustavo Henrique scored Alvinegro’s goal 13 minutes into the second half.

The result caused the Corinthians side to drop from seventh to ninth place with 32 points, totaling eight wins, eight draws, and seven losses, with 25 goals scored and 22 conceded. Timão also missed the chance to end this round in fifth place (the preliminary stage of the 2027 Conmebol Libertadores) and, consequently, within three points of fourth-placed Fluminense (38).

Photo: Rodrigo Coca/Agência Corinthians

The top three are: Palmeiras (48), Flamengo (45, with one game in hand), and Athletico-PR (41). At the start of the round, the gap between Corinthians and Cruzeiro was just one point. However, with the three points earned against Timão, the Minas Gerais side opened a four-point lead and moved into fifth place.

Atlético-MG, who beat Grêmio 3-0 at Arena MRV, also this Sunday, moved above the club from Parque São Jorge in the table, reaching 32 points in eighth place, ahead of Fernando Diniz’s team by number of wins — the tiebreaker (nine to eight). Red Bull Bragantino also have the same number of points as Galo and Timão and sit in seventh place, above the Minas Gerais team and Alvinegro on goal difference and number of wins, respectively.

The 23rd round will conclude this Monday (17) with the match between Internacional and Remo at Beira-Rio. At the moment, the relegation zone is made up of: Internacional (23 points), Remo (22 points), Vasco da Gama (22 points), and Chapecoense (11 points).

Corinthians will now turn their attention to the second leg of the round of 16 in the 2026 Conmebol Libertadores. Next Thursday (20), at 9:30 p.m. (Brasília time), Alvinegro will host Rosario Central-ARG, also in Itaquera. In the first leg, played in Argentina last Thursday (13), the match ended in a goalless draw. Another draw will take the contest to penalties.

In the Brazilian Championship, Fernando Diniz’s men will return to the pitch next Sunday (23), at 7:30 p.m., at Couto Pereira Stadium, to visit Coritiba in a match valid for the 24th round of the national competition. The 23rd round will conclude this Monday (17) with the match between Internacional and Remo at Beira-Rio.

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