Corinthians midfielder hails team’s Derby display in Paulista

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Central do Timão

·11 de febrero de 2026

Corinthians midfielder hails team’s Derby display in Paulista

By Fabio Luigi / Central do Timão Editorial Team

On the evening of last Sunday (8), Corinthians faced Palmeiras at the Neo Química Arena, in a match valid for the seventh round of the first phase of the 2026 Paulista Championship, and ended up losing by a score of 1-0. The result caused the Alvinegro to drop from fourth to fifth position in the overall state standings with 11 points (three wins, two draws, and one loss – nine goals scored and six conceded).

Moments after the final whistle, midfielder Raniele spoke with journalists in the mixed zone. The number 14 analyzed the team's performance in the Derby, talked about the reduced number of yellow cards he has been receiving, mentioned the attitude of midfielder Andreas Pereira before the penalty kick by striker Memphis Depay, and the situation of José Martínez regarding the squad after the documentation issue in Venezuela.

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Photo: Rodrigo Coca/Agência Corinthians

Analysis of Corinthians' performance in the Derby for the Paulistão

“I think everyone wanted to win, everyone wanted to leave with the three points and win a Derby, which is not of gigantic importance in the year for both clubs, but if you faithfully analyze our performance, we have been evolving, it was a game where we were consistent, where we dominated the opponent. We didn't win, obviously, but I think if we maintain this spirit for the rest of the season and refine our goal chances a bit more, refine our defense a bit more, I think we'll have a very solid team that's very hard to beat.”

Reduced number of yellow cards he has been receiving

“I rarely miss games, last year I managed to play 52 or 54 games, if I'm not mistaken. And one of the things that kept me out of games was suspension. So logically, if I have to stop a counterattack, do something, I will. But I got some yellows last year for complaining, silly fouls, and I think I've been policing myself a lot about that. I think I have to filter out the silly cards I used to get, the useless cards. So I think if it's to make a foul, stop a play, stop a counterattack, I will. So, it's something I've been policing more in relation to the cards I used to get that I thought I could avoid.”

Any specific factor for the defeat in the classic against Palmeiras?

“I don't know if there was a factor, I think we need to refine our finishing a bit more and in the final moments of the game be doubly attentive, I think that's it, it's something we need, of course. I've had this situation several times in the season, of us charging the full-back Garro and he turned and got it right several times, so it's not about saying no, he did, the play didn't work. The play is this, we train for it, train to have that space there and him to make that play, so it's not much about blaming the player, I think it's much more about thinking about what we can do beyond that play. We could have been more composed defensively, we could have scored one or two goals before and killed the game, but now it's no use, I think we have to think about our performance, which in my opinion, in my view, was a good performance and maintain that for the rest of the season, because we need to evolve more slowly.”

Andres Pereira's attitude in damaging the penalty spot

“If it were because of that penalty that Veiga took and missed, for example, if we had done that. Lost because we did it too, so it's much more up to the referee to punish or at the moment he's doing that we don't let it happen than really coming here and saying that's unsportsmanlike. Because if we do it and it works too, we would come out as smart. So I don't really believe in coming here to cry, saying it's unsportsmanlike, it's unfair. Man, it's part of the game, it's part of the game. Of course, for sure, we can't let the guy do that at home. The referee also has to be attentive, the linesman, I don't know, has to be watching. Because he didn't stomp, he stayed there, so I don't know, it's no use coming here now. We made a mistake in letting him do that. The referee could also have punished, so it's part of it.”

Refereeing

“We had to go with the proposal we had of having dynamics there of game exits and every time we went out to look for a counterattack, it was a foul and they stopped the game. Man, I think football continued in every way, last year we also beat them playing with set pieces, playing a game like they did today, so football continued in every way and today we played very well, but the opponent came out victorious, so I'll fix the points we made mistakes to be able to see the next games.”

Lessons from the defeat to Palmeiras in the Paulistão

“I think we need to refine a bit more in the final third, try to play a game with a slightly faster dynamic. They were really stopping the game, making a lot of fouls. We need to speed up our steps a bit more. Maybe release the ball a bit faster, anyway. These are things we need to look at, but now it's difficult too. The game is still very fresh in my mind. The image I have is from the field, so I need to see what happened. I saw from above the options we had, so I think it's something we'll evaluate a bit more during the week and know what we can do.”

Situation of José Martínez

“He had already explained himself to Dorival, we talked to him, he explained himself to us too, apologized, everything. It's an issue much more with the board than player to player. He is a guy who helped us a lot last year and we can't just exclude the player, he's a guy who can definitely help us. So I hope his situation gets resolved, that he can return to meetings, that we can count on his help too.”

Did the team worsen in the game after the missed penalty?

“It was the opposite, I think after the penalty we improved, we managed to pressure the opponent too, we managed to get out of their pressure and the game continued in the same tone as before the penalty, we managed to impose our rhythm, focus on them, push them back. The penalty was a fact that happened, the player's decision unfortunately missed, but he has also done it for us several times. So, it happens, we have to move on, I think after the penalty we managed, if I'm not mistaken, to evolve, but as I said, it's an image that is still very fresh in my mind, I need to see but in my opinion, we managed to control the whole game.”

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