Alessandro honoured by Corinthians before friendly, on legacy, Diniz | OneFootball

On the afternoon of this Sunday (12), before the ball rolled for the friendly between Corinthians and FC Cascavel at Estádio Olímpico Regional Jacy Miguel Scanagatta, in Cascavel, Paraná, former right-back Alessandro was honored by the club. Captain of the Conmebol Libertadores and FIFA Club World Cup titles, both in 2012, the idol received a plaque and an official Timão jersey from football executive Marcelo Paz and football manager Júlio César.

A resident of the Cascavel region, Alessandro took part in the ceremony and gave an interview in which he thanked the club for the recognition, commented on the work of the current board, assessed Fernando Diniz’s start as head coach, and also spoke about the political moment Corinthians is going through.

Photo: Disclosure / Corinthians

When commenting on the tribute he received, Alessandro said that the recognition represents not only his own journey, but also the history built by all the professionals who were part of the successful cycle between 2008 and 2013.

“It’s also a pleasure to see you all again. Great work to everyone on the broadcast of Cascavel and Corinthians today here in our western Paraná. I’m very happy and very grateful to the Corinthians board, to the president, to Marcelo, who is the football director, to Julinho, who is the manager and who joined the club a few months ago. I wish him a lot of success, always good work to everyone, and I leave my gratitude for the recognition.

It’s always nice to be remembered for what was done, for many of the achievements. Today I’m here in my region receiving a plaque, receiving a jersey, but it belongs to every Corinthians fan, every player who was part of all those groups from 2008 to December 2013, which were victorious years. I’m very happy, very proud, and very honored to receive this tribute from this institution, which is one of the biggest in the world.”

Next, the former captain was asked about Júlio César’s arrival in the football department and highlighted the new manager’s ability to perform the role.

“Julinho is an extremely intelligent guy. He already comes from excellent work at Red Bull, he has experience, he identifies with the club, he’s humble, hardworking, and he knows football very well. And, for sure, together with Marcelo and the whole staff, he’ll be able to make great decisions, because football is made of decisions — you make decisions every minute.

So I’m really rooting for them to have a strong connection in their decisions and to do their very best, because they have more than enough competence and knowledge, especially Julinho.”

During the interview, Alessandro also assessed the work being done by Fernando Diniz at Corinthians and emphasized the coach’s preparation to take charge of the black-and-white team.

“Diniz is someone I’ve known since our playing days. Man, Diniz is an incredibly competent professional, a guy who prepared himself. Beyond the practical knowledge he had as a player, he also sought academic knowledge. So we know how much he studied, how much he truly worked to earn the position he now holds as head coach of Sport Club Corinthians Paulista. And it’s not easy. That position is for very few people. You need tremendous mental preparation and competence.

He’s been trying to do a great job. It’s not easy at all. We know the club is going through a difficult financial reality. That creates a lot of difficulties for results on the field. Corinthians is a team that has everything it needs to have the best players in Brazil and in the world and, because of financial issues, it can’t.

But his competence remains, as does the excellent work he always does wherever he goes, and we’re rooting for him to lead our Corinthians in this second half of the season. There are many matches, major competitions, and very hard, very difficult work ahead.”

Looking ahead to the clash against Rosario Central in the Conmebol Libertadores round of 16, Alessandro said that challenges like this are part of football’s essence.

“This is one of the most important parts of football: the challenge. Football moves us through challenge, through difficulty, through the tough match, through the stadium being as full as possible, as loud as possible, as hostile as possible.

Sport is collective, especially football, and it is made of one very important detail. If the players truly understand this and put every bit of vanity aside, look at one another, and understand that through talent, quality, and commitment, the chance of victory gets closer, they will be capable of achieving great things, whether in the Libertadores, the Copa do Brasil, or the league.

But it’s one game at a time. There’s no point focusing on one competition. We have to focus first on Remo, which will be the first match of the Brasileirão restart. And the Brazilian Championship, to me, is harder than the Libertadores itself and the Copa do Brasil.”

Finally, the former full-back commented on Corinthians’ current political scenario. Alessandro said the institutional environment directly interferes with sporting performance and called for more stability so that the professionals can work.

“Look, my last spell, from 2021 to 2023, was three extremely political years. Maybe that’s a point the institution should pay more attention to. Political unity leads football toward calm and peace, and automatically the player focuses only on his performance.

Today we live in a different reality. The player is on social media, watches every possible program, and, man, everything said negatively about someone will reach them. In a team sport, some people handle it well, others not so much. And we need all 11 players to do their part as well as possible.

So, they were difficult years politically speaking. My wish is for the club to calm down, for people to understand that whoever is currently in an important position, leading the work, needs patience and needs time to do their job. The president needs his time, the board, the coaching staff, and so on, each one in their role.

If we remain constantly in a political war, the only ones who lose are us Corinthians fans, because it will reflect on the field. So my wish is for things to settle down and for us to look at football differently, so that the club can return to important achievements — but balanced achievements, not achievements where, at the end of them, we only mask the problems that, in most cases, when a title is won, get swept under the rug.

But time passes quickly, and the problems will catch up with us down the line. I experienced that a lot, and I hope that all the professionals currently leading the club have peace of mind and peace to work.”

Signed by Corinthians in 2008, Alessandro played 259 matches for the club, scored four goals, provided 24 assists, and won seven official titles: the Brazilian Championship Série B (2008), the Campeonato Paulista (2009 and 2013), the Copa do Brasil (2009), the Brazilian Championship (2011), the Conmebol Libertadores (2012), and the FIFA Club World Cup (2012).

Captain in the main titles of Timão’s recent history, he retired at the end of the 2013 season and remains one of the greatest idols in the club’s history.

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