Marcelo Paz outlines Corinthians plan, talks Memphis and Kayke | OneFootball

Football executive Marcelo Paz gave an interview on Thursday night (23) at CT Dr. Joaquim Grava and addressed important topics about Corinthians’ current situation on and off the pitch. Among the subjects discussed were the board’s planning, transfer market moves, Memphis Depay’s contract situation, and structural updates in the football department.

One of the main points of the press conference was the announcement of a new professional joining to work on the club’s international expansion. According to Paz, the role will be strategic in increasing Corinthians’ presence in the global market and strengthening relations with other clubs.

Photo: Rodrigo Coca/Agência Corinthians

While explaining the news, the executive detailed the creation of the position and the role of the new member of the team:

“In the football department, we are bringing in Gabriel Corrêa to work on Corinthians’ international market. He will be part of the football department. He has a background working at Manchester, Bayern, Manchester, and Chelsea as well. He was recently at D1 in Saudi Arabia. It is a new position in our department because he will travel around the world, take Corinthians’ image abroad, open markets, work on networking, and deal mostly with technical matters, the exchange of technical knowledge, and also market matters. Corinthians is expanding its ties in a more active way at the market, relationship, networking, and technical cooperation level. It is a new step within the club. We have now brought in a professional who has experience, is fluent in languages, has already worked for major clubs around the world, and is now at Corinthians’ service. He will be based here at the training center, but he will also travel a lot around the world. He will work with the youth setup as well. It is also a market matter with the youth ranks, with the database of our players, from the U-17s, U-20s, to the senior team. It is something new for Corinthians. Some clubs already work this way, and we are implementing it now. He started working here today, and we are getting things ready so you can meet this new professional soon.”

Next, the executive explained how the need for the hire came about and the strategic objective of the role within the club:

“With the demand from the Football Department, together with the Financial Department, for Corinthians to have a more active presence at the market level, with the various tiers of players we can work with. It is very easy for the market to identify the main players who shine, who have strong visibility, but clubs around the world work across all player levels, and we also want to work in different markets. We always talk about it, but we have to work the Turkey market, Mexico, MLS, the Arab market, Korea, Japan, all of that. There may be business opportunities. And an important revenue stream for Corinthians is player sales. So there is that side, but it is not just about player sales. It is technical cooperation, exchange programs, taking the Corinthians brand to the entire world in a closer way, creating relationships and networking. He will present and show what Corinthians is, the structure, what our assets are, and eventually negotiations may arise. Negotiation is one side of it.”

Paz also clarified how the new professional will work in relation to the club’s scouting department:

“No, bringing players in is the scout’s job. The scouting department is the one that will identify them. He also has scouting knowledge and experience with that. He will work together with our scouting team, both senior and youth, but that remains a responsibility of the scouting department and the football department.”

Regarding the squad, the executive indicated that Corinthians should not make immediate changes, highlighting head coach Fernando Diniz’s working profile and the value placed on the current group:

“He will develop players. We still have not discussed signings. We are still going to talk. I know names come up, there is speculation, and you also have your own views that the squad can be improved, but Diniz likes to develop. He is not the kind of coach who will want to fill this place with players. He has already made it clear that he has a good squad, that there are players who can be developed, and he still wants to take a closer look at some youth players who are already getting involved. Naturally, in the transfer window there will be some incoming and outgoing movement, but at the moment there are no names set in stone, no name advancing, no position where he has said, ‘I want someone for this position.’ He is still in that process of getting to know the squad better and perhaps then pointing the way. He tells me that a signing should only be made if it is a player who raises the level. Someone who arrives here and raises the level right away. So we already have many good pieces and others that they believe they can develop, as was the case with Kayke.”

The executive also commented on possible names linked in the market, such as winger Cebolinha, but avoided treating the player as a priority:

“I also like Cebolinha a lot, I have known him for a long time, he is from Ceará, we know each other and spent a lot of time together around there, and he used to attend Fortaleza matches. But that is only a detail. What matters is the player he is, the athlete he is, what we find interesting. But I am not going to tell you that he is a name at the very top of the list. He is an interesting name that the whole market likes, everyone knows that he has the possibility of a pre-contract with someone. As far as I know, there is more interest from the international market, but he is a player who, if he came, would be very welcome. However, there are still many variables for a possible negotiation.”

On forward Kayke, who is recovering from injury, Paz gave an update on the player’s situation:

“He is feeling much better, more confident. He is going to do work on the pitch, with all the necessary care, so that he can return as soon as possible.”

Finally, the executive commented on Memphis Depay’s situation, reinforcing the club’s interest in keeping the forward and highlighting the progress of the talks:

“Speaking about Memphis, it is repetitive, but necessary. It is a topic that always draws a lot of attention. Our intention is for him to stay. We understand that he wants to stay, and we know that a contractual adjustment needs to be made, which he believes should be done. He knows that, in order to stay at Corinthians, that adjustment is necessary. So things are moving in the right direction for it to work out. We are looking for partners to make it possible, and there have already been initial contacts with partners who have shown interest. So I am optimistic about the possibility of him staying. Diniz very much wants to work with him for longer, not just for this final stretch. So we will try to make it happen, because there is his desire, the club’s desire, the coaching staff’s desire, and also the fans’ desire. He wants to stay in Brazil, he wants to stay at Corinthians, and we are trying to make that possible.”

With that, Corinthians continue working behind the scenes to strengthen their structure, while also keeping their focus on squad development and the continuity of important pieces for the remainder of the season.

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