Hugo Souza celebrates milestone at Corinthians, discusses Brazil call-up

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Central do Timão

·24 de febrero de 2026

Hugo Souza celebrates milestone at Corinthians, discusses Brazil call-up

By Fabio Luigi / Central do Timão Editorial Team

Throughout the night of last Sunday (22), Corinthians faced Portuguesa at the Canindé Stadium, in a single match for the quarterfinals of the 2026 Paulista Championship, and ended up drawing 1-1 in regular time. Forward Vitinho, in stoppage time, scored the Corinthians goal that took the match to penalties. In the shootout, the Alvinegro won 8-7 and advanced to the semifinals.

Moments after the final whistle, goalkeeper Hugo Souza gave an interview to the press in the mixed zone and was asked about his dream of joining the Brazilian National Team, having become the third goalkeeper with the most penalties saved in Corinthians history. He answered whether his differential is precisely penalty kicks, comparisons with Cássio and Ronaldo Giovanelli, and his study of Portuguesa's penalty takers.

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Photo: Rodrigo Coca/Agência Corinthians

Check out below Hugo Souza's answers to the press after the match:

Dream of being called up for the Brazilian National Team for the World Cup

“Actually, I think what I have to do is keep working, performing my best on the field because that’s what got me there. That’s what I need to keep doing and improving, evolving, always pushing myself so that I can keep getting called up and, God willing, fulfill my dream of being at the World Cup. I think today’s commanding performance helped me a lot and I hope Professor Ancelotti saw what happened today.”

Third goalkeeper with the most penalties saved in Corinthians history – 14 in 102 games

“For me, it’s the fulfillment of a dream. Since I arrived here, in my first press conference, I said I was coming to Corinthians to write my own story, step by step, without comparing myself to anyone, without wanting to rush things. And the thing I heard most when I came here was: ‘Man, you’re going to take Cássio’s place, you’re crazy.’ Yes, I’m crazy, but I’m not going to try to compare myself to anyone, I have a lot of respect for the history of everyone who has been here.”

“Cássio, for me, is the greatest idol in the club’s history. We have Marcelinho, we have Ronaldo, but Cássio for me, as a goalkeeper in my position, is the greatest idol in the club’s history. So, I respect his history more, Ronaldo is a great idol of this club. And being among these names is gratifying for me, a dream come true, because I see that everything I’ve worked for, everything I’ve done to achieve, I’ve achieved step by step, and as I said, without wanting to compare myself to anyone, each with their own story, respecting them all, but writing my own.”

Relationship with Vitinho and praise for his teammate

“He’s a sensational guy. I’ve known Vitinho for a long time, since 2018 (at Flamengo). He’s always been a unique guy, a family man, a man of God, a hard worker. And I can only praise him; Vitinho is a reference for us as a man, as a person. And we’re a group full of men of character. We have no ego, we’re there for each other. And it’s because you haven’t had the chance to be inside the locker room. When Vitinho enters the locker room, you see everyone’s joy because he scored the goal. Because we knew he was a guy who needed that goal. He had already been helping us a lot on the field, creating game volume. And he got that goal, which was very important, right at the end. And I’m very happy that he was able to give that gift to his wife and his baby who’s about to be born.”

Studying Portuguesa’s penalty takers in anticipation of a possible shootout, which ended up happening

“I studied the players a lot, but what made it really hard for me was that of the players I studied, few were actually on the field, two or three. And one of those few totally threw me off, because he changed everything he had done and when he took the kick, it ruined all my study. But, the one I was most sure about, I didn’t save, it was the one in the middle, but I was lucky to guess the others and make the save, and I’m grateful for the coaching staff I have, the staff I have, because they help me a lot, they break everything down for me. I say, man, because I study this way, I like to think about it, and they help me a lot with that, so I have to thank them for it. There was a player whose side I couldn’t remember, I looked at the bench and my goalkeeping coach (Marcelo Carpes) pointed out the side, and he scored, so you see it doesn’t always work, but I’m happy to have helped with the qualification.”

“I had, yes, I had trained (penalty kicks), I train every day, so much so that when Allan came up to take the kick, I asked if he wanted me to take it or if he wanted to. Then he said: ‘No, leave it to me, I’m already here, I’ll take it.’ So, let’s go, so take it and I’ll save it. Thank God it worked out, but I was ready to take one too.”

Renê, Portuguesa forward, who ended up missing two penalties

“Man, he was a guy I studied and I thought I could do what I had studied and thank God it worked out. I saved his first one and then when I saved the first, I think the responsibility gets even bigger for him. And I was very calm to make the decision I had to make, I said, ah: ‘I’ll pick a side here and dive because I think the answer is all on him,’ he had already missed one and I think he has to do it, it’s great that he didn’t and I was lucky to guess the side and make the save.”

Gifted in penalty shootouts

“I think penalties have been a bonus, which have given me some numbers, which have given me some important personal analyses and I’m very happy about that. I’m 27 years old, I still have a lot to improve in every aspect of the game. But that’s day by day, that’s games, that’s learning, it’s consistency. I’m very happy to be learning from this football, to be learning and delivering results. Because when you deliver results, you’re calmer to work.”

“I’m a guy who pushes himself a lot and thank God I’ve been succeeding. Today was a very important game, where I was able to make saves that helped the team hold the score and we managed to tie at the end and then settle it in the penalties. So I’m very happy. If you ask me what I need to improve, I’ll tell you I need to improve in everything. And it’s true, but the penalties have been a bonus, which have helped me a lot and thank God for that.”

Next match

Before facing Novorizontino, next Saturday (28), at the Jorge Ismael de Biasi Stadium, for the semifinals of the Paulista Championship, Corinthians will return to the pitch next Wednesday (25), at 8 p.m. (Brasília time), when they will face Cruzeiro at the Mineirão Stadium, for the fourth round of the Brazilian Championship. At this moment, Dorival Júnior’s team is in fifth place in the national tournament with six points.

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