Against Chapecoense, attacking duo seek to end Corinthians goal drought | OneFootball

Corinthians face Chapecoense on Sunday night (6) at 7:30 p.m. (Brasília time) at Neo Química Arena, in a match valid for the 26th round of the 2026 Brazilian Championship. Currently, the club from Parque São Jorge sits only in 11th place with 32 points — eight wins, eight draws, and nine defeats — 26 goals scored and 25 conceded — and could reclaim 10th place with a victory.

The match against the bottom side in Série A represents a good opportunity for Kaio César and Memphis Depay to end their goal droughts for Corinthians, since both are expected to start as first-team players. The former has not scored since July 23, when he found the net in Timão’s 3-0 win over Remo in Itaquera, in the 19th match of the national competition. Since then, the No. 37 has played in ten matches, scoring no goals and providing no assists.

Photo: Rodrigo Coca/Agência Corinthians

Image: Central do Timão

Kaio César, it is worth remembering, is on loan to Corinthians from Al-Hilal of Saudi Arabia until the end of the season, with a purchase option of six million euros (just over R$30 million). The 22-year-old arrived at Parque São Jorge in search of more playing time, something he had not been getting with the Saudi side. Developed in Coritiba’s youth academy and standing out for Coxa’s senior team, he also played abroad for Vitória de Guimarães and Al-Hilal.

Overall, he has two goals and two assists in 26 matches (15 as a starter) wearing the Timão shirt, with 11 wins, eight draws, and seven defeats. He was part of the squad that won the Supercopa do Brasil against Flamengo at Mané Garrincha Stadium in Brasília — a 2-0 victory. After Fernando Diniz arrived at the beginning of April, he established himself as a starter.

Strike partner is going through a similar situation

Forward Memphis Depay, in turn, has just one goal and two assists in 17 matches in the 2026 season. That goal came on March 15, 2026, in a 1-1 draw against Santos at Vila Belmiro, in the sixth round of the Brazilian Championship. Since then, he has played six matches in a Corinthians shirt and recorded one assist. It is worth noting that between the end of March and late May, he was sidelined due to a grade 2 muscle injury in the hamstring of his right thigh.

That injury hurt his performance at the World Cup, where he ended up being a substitute for the Netherlands, then coached by Ronald Koeman. Later, he went through a long contractual renewal dispute with the club — his previous deal had expired in July 2026 — and only returned to action for the club on August 20. On that date, he was decisive in Timão’s qualification for the Libertadores quarterfinals against Rosario Central of Argentina, delivering the assist from a free kick for midfielder Breno Bidon to score the game’s only goal.

Memphis Depay’s numbers for Corinthians

Signed in September 2024 after not having his contract renewed by Atlético de Madrid of Spain, Memphis Depay arrived at Corinthians and immediately played a key role in the team’s surge in the previous Brazilian Championship edition (from the relegation zone to the Libertadores qualifying stage), scoring seven goals and providing one assist in 11 matches in the national tournament.

Last season and at the start of this one, he was decisive in the club’s Campeonato Paulista (2025), Copa do Brasil (2025), and Supercopa do Brasil (2026) titles, totaling two assists in those finals and playing an important role in the earlier knockout rounds. Wearing the Corinthians shirt, he has 20 goals and 15 assists in 81 matches — 41 wins, 18 draws, and 22 defeats — a 58% success rate. His contract runs until July 2028.

Before playing for Atlético de Madrid of Spain and Corinthians, he had spells with PSV of the Netherlands — where he came through the academy — Manchester United (England), Lyon (France), and Barcelona (Spain). He is Timão’s fifth-highest foreign goalscorer in history, behind Ángel Romero (67), Paolo Guerrero (54), Tévez (46), and Herrera (22).

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