Martínez dashes Corinthians’ hopes, still awaits Brazil return

In partnership with

Central do Timão

·23 January 2026

Martínez dashes Corinthians’ hopes, still awaits Brazil return

By Henrique Vigliotti and Fabio Luigi / Central do Timão Editorial Team

Amid the controversy regarding the reissuance of his Venezuelan passport, midfielder José Martínez still hasn’t managed to leave his home country and, consequently, return to Brazil. It’s worth noting that the Corinthians squad returned to training at CT Dr. Joaquim Grava on January 3rd (Saturday), and the player has yet to participate in any activities with the group.

Central do Timão found out that Corinthians expected the player to report back to the training center this Friday (23rd), which ultimately did not happen. Furthermore, the report also learned that, at this moment, the Corinthians management does not intend to take drastic measures regarding the situation of the number 70. On the other hand, Central do Timão was able to ascertain that the necessary documentation for the player to return to Brazil is still not ready.

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Photo: Rodrigo Coca/Agência Corinthians

Last week, in fact, Central do Timão found that the way the player was handling the situation was causing discomfort behind the scenes at the club. In recent press conferences, coach Dorival Júnior expressed dissatisfaction with the situation and, after the Alvinegro derby in the Paulistão last Thursday (22nd), even stated that José Martínez has not been communicating anything to the coaching staff. The player, on the other hand, had made a statement last Wednesday, saying he was in contact with club representatives.

José Martínez has not played for Corinthians since December 21st, when the Parque São Jorge club became four-time champions of the Copa do Brasil, against Vasco, at Maracanã. Venezuela, it’s important to note, is going through a turbulent geopolitical moment, especially with the United States. In the first days of the year, Nicolás Maduro, the Venezuelan president, was captured by the US government, which led to the closure of borders with Brazil and the suspension of basic services in Venezuela.

The renewal of the player’s passport is necessary for him to play in international matches for Corinthians in the first half of 2026. In an interview with Rádio Bandeirantes on Friday night (23rd), Corinthians’ football executive Marcelo Paz admitted discomfort with the situation and said there is no new estimate for when the player will return to Brazil.

“It’s an uncomfortable situation, I can’t deny it. I learned he wouldn’t be coming on the day I arrived here, the 3rd. At the presentation, I was informed he wouldn’t be coming because there was a problem with his passport: all the pages were used, so he needed to get a new one. He couldn’t fly without the document, as there was nowhere to stamp it. This happened on the eve of that problem in Venezuela involving President Maduro, a political and international issue. With the airspace closed, everything became even more difficult and delayed the process for him to get a new passport,” he began.

He also added: “We are depending on the Venezuelan passport service to release Martínez’s document. He has already applied, the deadline was eight business days, that deadline expired yesterday (Thursday) and the passport is still not ready. It wasn’t ready today and I don’t know if it will be ready on Monday or Tuesday. In other words, he can only come when the passport is ready so he can fly. That’s the reality.”

In September last year, Corinthians had already identified the need for the passport to be reissued and, because of that, took advantage of the year-end break to allow the player to go to Venezuela to resolve the issue. The executive emphasized that, amid the intense schedule, the player ends up being a significant absence, as Dorival Júnior has been rotating the squad at the start of the season.

“Could it have been resolved earlier? I don’t know. I arrived on the 3rd and there was no way to monitor this. Football complicates many issues of presence, travel, situations like this. But the fact is that we are waiting for him and hope that this passport is finally released so he can travel to São Paulo and report to the club, because we are counting on him.”

“There was talk that he could be made available, but there is nothing about that, absolutely nothing. It’s a big inconvenience, because we follow a line of work and Dorival rotates the team a lot, as is natural. We miss another quality player during the year, who fulfills another role in midfield. It’s a shame he’s not here. We keep checking daily: ‘Has the passport come out? How is it? Is it coming out today? Tomorrow?’ Unfortunately, we are still waiting,” he concluded.