Corinthians trio on Libertadores opener win and season ahead | OneFootball

On Thursday night (9), Corinthians traveled to Estadio Ciudad Vicente López, in Argentina, to face Platense in their opening match of the 2026 Copa Libertadores group stage. They won 2-0, with goals from Kayke and Yuri Alberto. After the match, the number 9 spoke about the dental procedure that almost ruled him out of the game.

“I’d had this toothache since last week, an absurd pain. My wisdom tooth grew in diagonally and started pushing all these front teeth here, so everything was very painful, on top of the wisdom tooth pain itself. Then on Monday I told him (Diniz) there was no way around it, I had to get it taken care of somehow, because it was hurting a lot, bothering me, keeping me from sleeping. And on Monday itself we managed to do it, and I promised him I would recover very quickly so I could be available and ready to play today. And thank God I was able to come here and help our team leave with the win,” the player told ESPN.

Photo: Marcelo Endelli/Getty Images

Next, Yuri Alberto spoke about the turbulent week Timão went through before the match and praised the team’s strength in getting the result against Platense. The striker also celebrated the performance of midfielder Rodrigo Garro, who provided the assists for both goals.

“It was a stretch, a very difficult week for us, but thank God we were able to be very resilient and leave here with the win, along with the support of our fans, who were here today as well. Like I said there, the first half was a little more difficult, with the only chance I had coming in the first half. I was lacking a bit of legs there, I had just come from pressing and then I got back and already had that chance,” he said.

“But thank God we came back much better in the second half, we started attacking the spaces we had more, and we ended up scoring both goals that way, attacking the spaces. We were very sharp, and thank God Garro was there too. I’m very happy that he can get back to being that Garro we know, the one we know he is, a very talented guy who can create many scoring chances for us,” Yuri Alberto added.

The Argentine midfielder also celebrated the performance in the Libertadores opener, but noted that it was only the beginning of the competition and that the team needs to keep winning to move past the poor run of recent weeks. He stressed the need to prepare well for the Derby against Palmeiras, which is the team’s next match of the season.

“I’m happy, but I’m also aware of the moment we were going through. With this win we can breathe and start believing again in what Corinthians has to be. Our group has already shown it, and today once again we showed why Corinthians is in this competition. Because I think it’s a dream for every Corinthians fan, a dream since I arrived here to be in this competition,” Garro told ESPN.

“So today was the beginning, it’s only the beginning, and now we need to rest because we know we have a very important game, a game to fully turn this page and also get back on track in the Brasileirão, because we need it,” he continued.

“Now it’s time to rest. Today was a very demanding match, we have two days to recover as much as possible and also listen to what we did well, what we did wrong, so we can keep improving. And on Sunday everyone knows these games (derbies) are games we have to win, there is no other result, and I think our team is ready for this battle, as the fans say,” added the number 8.

Goalkeeper Hugo Souza also spoke as he left the pitch. The player described Corinthians’ run of matches without a win as unacceptable and pointed out the importance of using a Libertadores match to bounce back.

“Well, I think everyone knows our moment wasn’t the best possible, maybe one of the worst moments since I got here, I think the longest stretch we’ve had without winning. We cannot accept Corinthians going that long without a win, and we were aware of that. And there’s nothing better than a Libertadores match, an important night, it’s different, an away game, and here in Argentina it’s always very difficult to win,” Hugo began.

“We played a very important match, we were a very clinical team, we didn’t give the opponent chances, and when they did get opportunities we were ready to defend. Thank God we were very effective up front, our team has a lot of quality from midfield forward, and today we were able to show that quality with the win,” he added.

The goalkeeper also spoke about the start of Fernando Diniz’s work and pointed out that there has not yet been enough time to absorb the coach’s style of play. Hugo Souza also revealed that the manager chose a more conversational approach because of the lack of time to adjust the tactical side.

“Actually, we only had two days to adapt and understand the information, but it’s always easier for us to work while winning. So over time he’ll be able to implement his ideas into the game, and we’ll be ready to adapt and do our best,” the goalkeeper said.

“Today was a game where he talked more, where he spoke more, gave information, but he made it very clear that this wouldn’t be the game where we’d be able to implement everything. So we played a simpler game, where we played according to what the game demanded. He is certainly a great coach, and we’re very excited to understand how he works and do everything better on the pitch,” he concluded.

After facing Platense of Argentina in the Conmebol Libertadores group stage, Corinthians will turn their focus back to the Brazilian Championship. That is because next Sunday (12), at 6:30 p.m. Brasília time, Alvinegro will face Palmeiras at Neo Química Arena in the 11th round of the national competition.

At the moment, Timão is the first team outside the relegation zone with 10 points — two wins, four draws and four losses — with eight goals scored and 11 conceded. Therefore, a win is essential for the team to breathe in the national tournament.

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