Forward ends long wait at Corinthians with Copa do Brasil goal | OneFootball

Throughout the night this Thursday (6), Corinthians took the field at Neo Química Arena to face Internacional in the second leg of the 2026 Copa do Brasil round of 16, defeated the team from Rio Grande do Sul 2-1, but ended up eliminated from the national knockout competition after losing 3-2 on aggregate – their worst campaign in the tournament since 2021, with R$ 5 million in the club’s coffers.

Corinthians’ second goal in the match was scored by striker Pedro Raul, who found the net for the first time in 26 matches this season, ending a drought of more than a year and a half without scoring while wearing the Corinthians shirt. He had not scored for Timão since January 16, 2025, when he found the net in a 2-1 comeback win over Red Bull Bragantino at Nabi Abi Chedid Stadium, in that year’s Paulista Championship opener.

Photo: Rodrigo Coca/Agência Corinthians

The No. 18’s goal came in the 25th minute of the second half, when Rodrigo Garro set up Matheus Bidu on the left, and the No. 21 crossed for the center-forward to head the ball into the back of the net against the team from Rio Grande do Sul. In total, it had been 31 matches without a goal for the club from Parque São Jorge. During that period, it is worth noting, he was loaned to Ceará between March and December 2025.

Considering his overall numbers, Pedro Raul had not scored since December 7, 2025. On that occasion, he scored for Vozão in a 3-1 comeback loss to Palmeiras at Arena Castelão, in the final round of the Brazilian Championship. The defeat relegated the Ceará side to Brazil’s Serie B.

At the start of the season, it is worth remembering, Pedro Raul drew interest from other Serie A clubs, such as Vitória and Remo, but remained at Parque São Jorge, representing a vote of confidence from Dorival Jr.’s coaching staff, who was Timão’s manager at the time. In the middle of this year, Internacional also showed interest in the player, but eventually pulled back from negotiations.

The striker was signed by Corinthians in January 2024, at the beginning of former president Augusto Melo’s administration, from Toluca of Mexico for five million dollars (R$ 25 million at the exchange rate at the time), split into four installments, two to be paid in 2024 and the remainder in 2025. However, Timão renegotiated the start of payment to only the beginning of last year. As a result, due to interest, the player will cost Alvinegro eight million dollars (around R$ 42.8 million at the current exchange rate), to be paid in nine installments between 2025 and 2028.

Even with the high investment, Pedro Raul was unable to establish himself at Corinthians under Mano Menezes, António Oliveira, Ramón Díaz, Dorival Júnior and, so far, remains in the same situation under Fernando Diniz. After getting opportunities and posting low performances in 2024, the striker was loaned to Ceará in March 2025. There, he was the team’s top scorer that season, with 17 goals and two assists in 45 matches. Even so, Vozão was relegated to Serie B and, for financial reasons, did not exercise the option to buy the player.

Thus, the No. 18 returned to Corinthians at the start of 2026 and was reintegrated into the squad, then still managed by Dorival Júnior. This year, he has played 26 matches, with one goal and two assists. Since arriving at Timão, he has recorded four goals and four assists in 66 matches – 27 wins, 18 draws and 21 losses – a 50% success rate.

He was part of the squad responsible for the team’s surge in the 2024 Brasileirão (from the bottom four to the Libertadores qualifying stage), in addition to taking part in the Supercopa do Brasil title win against Flamengo at Mané Garrincha Stadium in Brasília. Currently, for the attacking sector, Corinthians has: Yuri Alberto, Memphis Depay, Jesse Lingard, Dieguinho, Vitinho, Kayke Ferrari, Gui Negão and Kaio César.

It is worth noting that, at the moment, only four of those options are available to the coaching staff, as Memphis Depay is still negotiating a contract renewal, while Yuri Alberto, Vitinho and Kayke Ferrari are recovering from injuries in the medical department. The No. 9 is dealing with a muscle injury in his thigh, while the other two are recovering from knee ligament surgeries.

With Pedro Raul available, Corinthians still have the Brazilian Championship and the Conmebol Libertadores until the end of the season. Next Sunday (9), Timão will visit Red Bull Bragantino at Cícero de Souza Marques Stadium in Atibaia, at 6:30 p.m. (Brasília time), for the 22nd round of the national competition. Currently, Alvinegro sit in ninth place with 29 points – seven wins, eight draws and six losses – with 22 goals scored and 20 conceded.

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