Palmeiras team news: Paulinho and Piquerez train for Copa do Brasil | OneFootball

After thrashing Vasco 4-1 in the Brazilian Championship, Palmeiras has already turned its focus to the Copa do Brasil. The green-and-white squad reported back on Monday morning (24) at the Academia de Futebol and began preparations for the derby against Santos in the first leg of the competition’s quarterfinals.

The match will be played this Wednesday (26) at 9:30 p.m. (Brasília time) at Nubank Parque. The return leg is scheduled for September 2 at Vila Belmiro.

Piquerez and Paulinho make progress in preparation

The players who played 45 minutes or more against Vasco did recovery activities at the recovery and neuroscience center. The rest of the squad went out onto the pitch for technical drills in small-sided spaces.

The goalkeepers also had a specific schedule, with shot-stopping exercises and work on improving their ball distribution with their feet.

The main news involved Piquerez. Sidelined against Vasco due to swelling in his left leg, the full-back took part in part of the activities as a “joker,” playing for both teams during the drills.

Paulinho, who is in the physical transition process, also took part in most of the work with the squad. The presence of both players represents progress in the buildup to the derby.

Verdão seeks 50th home win over Santos

In addition to a place in the Copa do Brasil semifinals, Palmeiras will have a historic milestone on the line at Nubank Parque.

Considering the Parque Antarctica era, Estádio Palestra Italia, and the current arena, Verdão have already hosted Santos 88 times on home soil, with 49 wins, 24 draws, and just 15 defeats, as well as 164 goals scored and 88 conceded.

That means Wednesday’s derby could mark Palmeiras’ 50th home victory over Santos.

Peixe is also the opponent that has lost the most times to Palmeiras at the stadium. Guarani comes next, with 47 defeats.

The recent record also favors Verdão: 11 matches unbeaten against Santos at the arena, with nine wins and two draws.

Palmeiras still unbeaten in derbies in 2026

Abel Ferreira’s team also goes into the match with a positive record in state derbies this season.

There have been five wins and two draws in seven matches.

In the Campeonato Paulista, Palmeiras won every derby they played: they beat Santos 1-0, São Paulo 3-1, Corinthians 1-0, and São Paulo again, 2-1, in the semifinal.

In the Brazilian Championship, Verdão beat São Paulo 1-0, drew 0-0 with Corinthians, and were held to a 1-1 draw by Santos.

The team, therefore, still does not know what it is to lose a state derby in 2026.

2022 mark on the radar

The strong derby performances also put Palmeiras in pursuit of a historic record.

The club’s best mark in a single season is 10 derby wins, achieved in 2022. That year, Verdão surpassed the previous record of nine victories, set in 1965 and 1969.

With five wins so far in 2026, Abel’s team still needs five more derby victories to match that mark.

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