Corinthians U20 coach on goalless Copinha draw, Tupã’s early exit

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Central do Timão

·7 January 2026

Corinthians U20 coach on goalless Copinha draw, Tupã’s early exit

By Fabio Luigi / Central do Timão Editorial Team

On the night of last Tuesday (6th), Corinthians faced Luverdense at Zezinho Magalhães Stadium in Jaú, for the second round of the group stage of the 2026 São Paulo Junior Football Cup, and ended up with a goalless draw. The result left the team in second place in Group 8 with four points.

Moments after the final whistle, Corinthians’ U-20 coach, William Batista, gave an interview to the portal Meu Timão and analyzed the Timãozinho’s match. Throughout the 90 minutes, the match was marked by few opportunities on both sides and, in turn, the Alvinegro was unable to impose its playing rhythm.

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Photo: Rodrigo Gazzanel/Agência Corinthians

“Based on what happened in the last game, we tried to improve a little our ability to keep the ball, to exchange passes, to increase circulation and try to enter the final third a little less with long balls and more with the ball on the ground. We managed to do this a few times, to get into the box, but we lacked putting the ball into the area more often. For the number of times we entered the final third, we created few clear chances or goal opportunities,” he began.

Next, he commented on what was missing for the team to secure the three points and guarantee a spot in the knockout stage after just the second match: “I think that if we had managed to put the ball into the box more often, more balls in finishing situations, with the volume of entries into the final third, through the way we got there, we could have created more goal chances and gotten closer to victory”, he added.

Later, the Timãozinho coach explained the substitution of forward Tupã (Kayke Dallaqua) at the 27th minute of the first half. In the play in question, the number 11 of the Filhos do Terrão elbowed the opponent in the face and was shown a yellow card. He was replaced by Rodrigo Júnior.

“Tupã took an unnecessary risk there. Unfortunately, he kicked the guy on the ground, in the play where he got the yellow card. In a competition like the Copinha, there’s not much room for error. If you lose a player in a tournament that is extremely physical and mental, the price to pay is very high”, he continued.

In 2025, Tupã was one of the standouts of Corinthians’ U-17, scoring eight goals in 34 matches. His contract ends in October 2028. Despite the mistake, William Batista emphasized his confidence in the player’s potential.

“Tupã is a guy I really believe in, he’s someone the club believes in, who has a lot to develop based on his potential. It’s a learning experience for him, so he knows that, in the first half, in a game that wasn’t as aggressive as the play he made, there was no need for all that aggression and to take the risk he took. If the referee thought he should have been sent off, he could have been,” he added.

Finally, the coach of the Filhos do Terrão spoke about the medical attention given to goalkeeper Matheus Corrêa (2006) during the second half. Batista said he was not sure what it was about, but believes it was something related to an ankle problem.

“I didn’t see, I haven’t spoken to the doctor yet, nor in the locker room, I don’t know if it was the ankle, but, in fact, I didn’t even try to find out at the time, just to focus on what was happening, and I left it to the doctor and Moisés, who is our goalkeeping coach, at that moment,” he concluded.

Timãozinho will return to the field this Friday (9th), at 6:15 pm (Brasília time), at Zezinho Magalhães Stadium, to face XV de Jaú, for the third and final round of the group stage of the 2026 Copinha. To qualify for the next stage, the Alvinegro only needs a draw against the team from the interior of São Paulo, leader of Group 8 and already qualified.

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