Corinthians quartet called up for Brazil Under-17s World Cup camp | OneFootball

Head coach Rilany Silva announced on Tuesday (30) the list of 28 players called up for the first preparation period of the Brazil Women’s U-17 National Team ahead of the World Cup in the category, which will be held between October and November in Morocco. Corinthians will be one of the clubs with the strongest representation in the squad, with four players called up.

The called-up Brabinhas are goalkeeper Nathália Cardoso, center-back Kaillany Ranifah, and midfielders Carol Melo and Pepê. The players will report on July 6 at CT Dartanhã, in Guararema (SP), where they will train until the 16th. During this period, the National Team will play a training match against Santos’ women’s team, scheduled for July 11.

Photo: Staff / CBF

Quartet represents the black-and-white youth academy

Among those called up, Pepê arrives as one of the standout names in Corinthians’ age group. The midfielder has scored 24 goals in 43 matches for the U-17 team and has also already made eight appearances for the U-20 side this season.

Carol Melo is also going through the process of integration between youth levels. The midfielder played nine matches for the U-20 team in 2026, scored one goal, and also has 28 appearances and six goals for the U-17 side since joining the club.

In defense, Kaillany Ranifah remains established as one of the top center-backs in the black-and-white youth academy. This season, she has made seven appearances for the U-20 side and has accumulated 23 matches, two goals, and one title with the U-17 team, where she continues to be one of the squad’s key players.

Rounding out the Corinthians list is goalkeeper Nathália Cardoso. At just 15 years old, the shot-stopper has received another opportunity with the Brazil National Team after beginning her path in Corinthians’ youth academy, where she already has five appearances for the U-17 side.

When announcing the call-ups, Rilany Silva explained that the goal of this first cycle is to raise the level of training sessions and integrate new players into the group ahead of the World Cup.

“For this training period, our goal is to raise the level of the sessions, make sure the new players absorb the content as quickly as possible, and then test them against Santos at a competitive level close to what the World Cup could be.”

The coach also highlighted that the group keeps the core of the South American Championship-winning team, while making room for new players to be observed during preparation.

“We don’t have much time or room to test new players, so we kept a core of those who went to the South American Championship, along with 11 names who did not go, seven of whom are truly new. They are players to challenge and test.”

This will be the first of two preparation periods planned by the coaching staff before the World Cup. After the July training camp, the National Team will gather again at the end of September for the final stage of preparations before traveling to Morocco.

In the draw for the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup, Brazil was placed in Group C alongside Canada, Norway, and a team yet to be defined by the African qualifiers.

Rilany believes that, despite the squad’s renewal, the team has the conditions to match or even surpass the historic campaign achieved in 2025, when Brazil finished in fourth place, its best result in the history of the competition.

“Last year, the team was more experienced and had already played in the previous World Cup. Now we have players who have never competed in a World Cup, but it is a qualified group with a very strong competitive mindset. We expect to play a leading role and have as much or even more influence than last year. We already know the competition and understand what it demands mentally, physically, and tactically.”

With four representatives in the squad, Corinthians reinforces the prominence of its youth academy on the national stage and will have players taking part in the Brazil National Team’s preparation for the category’s main competition in 2026.

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