Corinthians could see first-choice centre-back duo return after a month | OneFootball

Corinthians hopes to have news in defense for the match against Vitória this Saturday, in the 30th round of the Brazilian Championship. Coach Dorival is awaiting the return of two players in the sector.

One of them is certain. Gustavo Henrique, a starter, served his suspension in the 1-0 victory against Atlético-MG and is available again.

In addition to him, André Ramalho is also hoping to be named in the squad again. The defender has completed his physical transition after recovering from a strain in his right thigh and has been training normally with the rest of the squad.

Starting duo back?

With that, Dorival could once again field the starting center-back duo (André Ramalho and Gustavo Henrique) after one month. The last time they played together was in the 1-0 defeat to Sport, in Recife, on September 21.

Soon after, André suffered the injury. During this period, the young academy player João Pedro Tchoca got his chance alongside Gustavo Henrique. Cacá was also used in certain matches.

Dorival also switched to a three-defender formation in some games, dropping Raniele or Angileri back to the last line.

Defense struggling

There were five games during the absence of the starting center-back duo. In this period, Corinthians had two wins, two losses, and one draw, with six goals conceded.

The worst setback came in the derby against Santos. Dominated by their rivals, Timão conceded three goals and could have lost by more.

Corinthians' next match

Standings

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