Under Fernando Diniz, Terrão graduate starts most games for Corinthians | OneFootball

On Saturday night (18), Corinthians faced Vitória at Barradão Stadium in a match valid for the 12th round of the 2026 Brazilian Championship, and could only manage a goalless draw. The result extended the team’s negative run in the national tournament, with Corinthians now sitting in 17th place on 12 points — two wins, six draws and four losses — with eight goals scored and 11 conceded.

Despite another slip-up in the league, 21-year-old forward Kayke made his fourth straight start — all under Fernando Diniz — and is now enjoying his longest run as a starter since being promoted to the professional squad. Previously, his longest spell in the starting lineup had come in August 2025, when the team was managed by Dorival Júnior, who was recently dismissed. At the time, the squad was dealing with frequent absences in attack, such as Yuri Alberto (recovering from groin hernia surgery) and Memphis Depay (right thigh injury).

Photo: Rodrigo Coca/Agência Corinthians

Back then, the No. 31 started matches against Bahia (at home, Brasileirão), Vasco da Gama (away, Brasileirão) and Athletico-PR (away, first leg of the Copa do Brasil quarterfinals), failing to score in all three. In the first, Alvinegro were beaten 2-1, while in the other two they won 3-2 and 1-0, respectively.

Under the new coach, who took charge of Corinthians on April 6, Kayke started against Platense-ARG (82 minutes), Palmeiras (83 minutes), Santa Fé-COL (81 minutes) and Vitória (77 minutes). The club from Parque São Jorge won the first and third matches 2-0 in the Libertadores, while drawing the second and fourth scoreless in the Brasileirão.

In tonight’s match, the youngster played 77 minutes before being replaced by English midfielder Jesse Lingard. According to Sofascore, a sports statistics app, the winger posted the following numbers in the match: 12/14 accurate passes (86%), 27 touches, 1/2 successful dribbles, four carries, 3/3 tackles won (100%), one clearance, one ball recovery, four defensive contributions and 4/6 ground duels won. His rating on the app was 6.8.

This season, Kayke has recorded two goals and one assist in 13 appearances. He was promoted to Corinthians’ professional squad after winning the 2024 Copa São Paulo de Futebol Jr, in which he scored in the final, netting the title-winning goal against Cruzeiro at Neo Química Arena. Initially, he did not get much space, playing just three matches between January 2024 and April 2025 — under Mano Menezes, Antônio Oliveira and Ramón Díaz. After Dorival Jr arrived, he began to be used more regularly in the senior squad.

Overall, he has two goals and one assist in 25 matches for Corinthians (10 as a starter), with nine wins, 12 draws and four losses — a 52% success rate. In addition, he has won three titles: the Campeonato Paulista (2025), Copa do Brasil (2025) and Supercopa do Brasil (2026). His contract runs until June 2027. For Timão’s Under-17 and Under-20 teams, he scored 39 goals in 136 matches.

After the away goalless draw with Vitória in the Brasileirão, Corinthians will now turn their attention to their debut in the 2026 Copa do Brasil. Next Tuesday (21), the Tiradentes holiday, Alvinegro will face Barra, from Santa Catarina, at 9:30 p.m. (Brasília time), in the first leg of the fifth round of the national knockout tournament, at Ressacada Stadium.

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