Corinthians’ tactical masterclass undone by costly slip-ups | OneFootball

The Corinthians played better and dominated most of the classic match against Santos this Thursday, in the Campeonato Paulista, but conceded a goal by Gabigol in the final minutes after a series of mistakes and ended with a 1-1 draw. Timão deserved more at Vila Belmiro.

The match started evenly, but Corinthians soon took control of the game with a tactical masterclass by Dorival Júnior over Vojvoda. The coach filled the midfield with Matheus Pereira instead of a forward and dominated the classic.

The team from Parque São Jorge controlled the sector, having more possession, winning the first and second balls, and involving Santos. The team missed the chance to open the score with a penalty wasted by Yuri Alberto, but the forward redeemed himself minutes later and put Corinthians ahead.

Drop in pace

Timão could have scored the second and third goals, but missed the opportunity to 'twist the knife'. The team started to lose pace with the entry of Rodrigo Garro, who made his season debut. The Argentine midfielder was on a different pace compared to the others and contributed to Corinthians losing control of the midfield.

Sequence of errors

The victory seemed secured, but Corinthians conceded the equalizing goal to Santos in a sequence of blunders.

First, Vitinho lost the ball in attack and provided a counterattack for Peixe. Then, Charles failed to foul Robinho Jr. to 'kill' the counterattack. Finally, there was a refereeing error, which saw a highly controversial foul by Gustavo Henrique on Lautaro Díaz.

Gabigol struck with power and benefited from a fourth mistake, by Hugo Souza. The goalkeeper fumbled the shot from Santos' number 9, allowing the ball to end up in the back of the net.

Head held high

The result is frustrating, but the performance is encouraging. The test with five midfielders and Yuri Alberto leading the attack worked, offering another option for Dorival.

The Corinthians coach knows there are errors to be corrected, but sees progress in the team.

“The team is in a process of evolution. A detail here or there takes away the possibility of confirming that. The team performs well, but due to an error, a detail, it doesn't achieve the result. This creates uncertainty,” lamented Dorival.

“I noticed since last year that the team was maturing, could achieve important results, especially in the Copa do Brasil. We need more elements to have a stronger, more composed team, to make changes and maintain the same level of the team,” he added.

Standings situation

With the result at Vila, Corinthians remains in seventh place in the State Championship standings, with five points, and completes three games without a win. So far, there are two draws, one loss, and one victory.

Next Corinthians match

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