Andressa Alves puts the league first, rallies Fiel for Neo Química decider | OneFootball

Even with the Libertadores approaching, Corinthians’ focus is completely on the Brazilian Women’s Championship. In an exclusive interview with Central do Timão, Andressa Alves said the squad prefers to leave the continental competition for later and put all its attention on the national semifinal against Bahia.

As Brabas will face the team from Bahia in two matches for a place in the Brazilian Championship final. For Andressa, the importance of the tournament goes beyond the possibility of winning another title, since the competition also guarantees qualification for next year’s Libertadores.

Photo: João Brandino

Experienced in international tournaments and continental champion with Corinthians in 2025, the number 8 assured that the butterflies will still be there when the time comes to play the Libertadores again. Before that, though, her mind is on Bahia.

“No, it won’t. We’re really leaving it for later, it seems like just empty talk when we say we’ll think about the Libertadores afterward, because we know the main competition is the Brazilian Championship, which is what gives you a spot in next year’s Libertadores, and we know how important it is for us to keep winning.

So, our minds are focused on Bahia, because they’ll be two great matches, a real show, I’m sure of it, very difficult. And then, when things settle down, we’ll see what happens. We’ll start thinking about the Libertadores. It’ll be difficult because it’ll be in Quito, there’ll be altitude. So we also know that there, when you step into the Libertadores and start playing, you really understand how difficult it is to win a Libertadores.”

Andressa highlights the small margin for error in the Libertadores

The short format of the Libertadores is one of the factors that increases the competition’s level of difficulty. Unlike the Brazilian Championship, in which a team can still recover after a negative result, Andressa believes the continental tournament offers little room for corrections along the way.

“You don’t have time to make mistakes and fix them. In the Brazilian Championship, you can lose a game and still have time to correct things. In the Libertadores, you can’t.”

The experience is nothing new for the player. Even before arriving at Parque São Jorge, Andressa had already won the continental competition with São José. In 2025, she lifted the trophy again, this time wearing the shirt of the club she supports.

In her second season with Timão, the player has 22 matches, four goals, and eight assists. In total, since arriving at Corinthians, she has 62 appearances, 11 goals, and 18 assists.

When speaking about her individual goals for the two decisive tournaments, Andressa avoided setting a specific target for goals or assists. The priority is to keep contributing in different ways.

“I think it’s about continuing to deliver what I’ve been doing every day, in the matches. Keep contributing with assists, keep contributing with goals, help in any way possible, running forward, running back, showing the fighting spirit Corinthians fans like. I think that’s the most important thing.”

Number 8 calls on the Fiel for the showdown at the Arena

The second leg of the Brazilian Championship semifinal will be played at Neo Química Arena. Andressa used the interview to ask for the fans’ presence and recalled that Corinthians supporters followed the team even outside the country this season.

The number 8 also commented on the match time and emphasized the difference the crowd can make in a knockout clash.

“We know you are everywhere. You already went to London, supporting us there, which was really cool, an incredible experience, and we’re counting on you on Monday at Neo Química. We know the kickoff time doesn’t help, it’s not our fault, but please come, because we really need you and, when we have your support at Neo Química, it’s absolutely essential.”

Club World Cup left memories and fueled the desire for another opportunity

The reference to London is about Corinthians’ participation in the Women’s Club World Cup. The team reached the final and came close to the title, losing only in extra time.

Andressa, who had a long spell in European football before returning to Brazil, said she tried to pass confidence on to the group during the competition. For her, the Libertadores title that took Corinthians to the Club World Cup already showed the team had what it takes to compete on equal terms.

“The experience was incredible. I think the days we lived there were unforgettable. As a group, we became even more united. The experience I brought onto the field was that it’s 11 against 11, and that we had a lot of ability. If we were there, it was because we had managed to win the Libertadores, so we had a lot of potential and we had to give everything, everything, everything, everything, because we were the underdogs, so we had to push beyond ourselves. And that’s what we did. Unfortunately, we lost there in extra time, but I’m sure Corinthians fans were very proud of what we did and what we gave. We ended up just short of the title, by a small detail, but who knows, maybe we’ll reach the Club World Cup again.”

The possibility of returning to the world stage goes precisely through the Libertadores, which will be played later on. Corinthians arrive as the reigning champions and once again aim to turn a continental title into a place in another international competition.

World Cup in Brazil also enters the picture

With three World Cups on her résumé with the Brazilian National Team, Andressa also spoke about expectations for the 2027 edition, which will be played in Brazil.

The player especially highlighted the fans’ power to mobilize and mentioned Neo Química Arena, which will host matches in the tournament.

“The expectation is huge, from every fan, that Brazil can have a great World Cup and leave a great legacy, with the fans showing up for the matches. That’s really cool, having matches at Neo Química, and we know that when the national team plays there, it’s 40,000-plus people. So that will show the world that football is Brazilian.”

Andressa leaves a message for girls who dream of football

The interview ended with a message directed at girls who want to build a career in football. With a career that took her through Brazil, France, Spain, Italy, and the United States, as well as the Brazilian National Team, Andressa reinforced the importance of not giving up on that goal in the face of difficulties.

“No one can stop your dreams if you are determined to make them come true. There’s a phrase that goes: ‘Never change your dream, change the world.’ So it depends only on you to keep training, keep fighting, and I’m sure that the day you put on this shirt, you’ll understand what it means.”

Now, before turning their attention to defending the Libertadores title, Andressa and Corinthians have the Brazilian Championship semifinal against Bahia ahead of them. After the first meeting at Fonte Nova, the spot in the final will be decided in front of the Fiel at Neo Química Arena.

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