Palmeiras' Libertadores rival part ways with Paulo Autuori | OneFootball

Sporting Cristal, which is in Palmeiras’ group in the Copa Libertadores, announced the dismissal of Brazilian coach Paulo Autuori due to poor results in the Peruvian league.

Autuori secured the team’s qualification for the Libertadores group stage after defeating Paraguay’s Dos de Mayo and Venezuela’s Carabobo in penalty shootouts.

In the 2026 Apertura tournament, Sporting Cristal sits in sixth place with 11 points, nine behind leaders Alianza Lima and Los Chankas.

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According to the local press, the Brazilian had shown himself to be “uncomfortable in his latest statements about the team’s performance and insisted on the signing of one last foreign player.”

Autuori had previously coached Sporting Cristal in 2002, when he won the national title with the club.

In this latest spell, the experienced coach had been in charge since April 2025.

Cristal is in Libertadores Group F alongside Palmeiras, Cerro Porteño (Paraguay), and Junior Barranquilla (Colombia).

The Peruvian side will make its debut in the competition on April 8 against Cerro at the National Stadium in Lima.

*By AFP

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