Corinthians sign defender, director explains transfer strategy

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Central do Timão

·9 Januari 2026

Corinthians sign defender, director explains transfer strategy

By Henrique Pereira / Central do Timão Editorial Team

During his presentation at CT Dr. Joaquim Grava, Marcelo Paz, the new football executive at Corinthians, confirmed the club’s first signing for the 2026 season. It is center-back Gabriel Paulista, who is already in São Paulo and is expected to be at Neo Química Arena to watch Timão’s debut in the Paulista Championship.

“What I see is offers from big-name players who want to come here, who make an effort to come here. There’s the case of Gabriel Paulista, who has already undergone a medical today, and very soon, following all the club’s procedures and passing the medical exams, he will be announced and should be at the Arena on Sunday. So there’s one more reason to be there with us on Sunday.”, he said in a press conference.

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Photo: Rodrigo Coca/Ag. Corinthians

“A player who made every effort to come here, who gave up a lot of money to come here, who came as a free agent, and there are many people who want to make the same move because the brand is very strong, it’s a Libertadores, World Cup brand.”, he continued.

At 35 years old, Gabriel Paulista terminated his contract with Besiktas, from Turkey, and arrives at Parque São Jorge with vast international experience, accumulated from stints in Spanish and English football. Although he is, so far, the only signing in progress, Marcelo Paz emphasized that Corinthians will need to act cautiously in the market, respecting financial limits and betting on the strength of the club’s brand as a differentiator.

“Players want to be at Corinthians to gain exposure for their national teams too, not just the Brazilian one. With creativity, with quality, without making financial madness, within the budget given and within what the club’s financial restructuring allows.”, the executive pointed out.

“I’ve already had many meetings with Dorival, with Renan (Bloise, scouting manager), but I’ve also had some meetings with people from the financial department, so that we are aligned, step by step, with each signing, each move, to be able to honor our commitments. And Dorival’s understanding that we are going to build the squad in this way. Dorival is an experienced professional, a joy to work with, who understands this is the way and is also helping us in this role,” he continued.

With the transfer ban ending this Friday, after formal notification from Santos Laguna, Mexico, to FIFA, Corinthians now has more freedom to move forward in the transfer window. The executive acknowledged that the squad still has gaps and reinforced that planning remains conditioned to the club’s financial situation.

“The team has market needs. We have a good team, but we need a more robust squad. We’ve discussed this with Dorival from day one. Along with Renan, we’ve been working on the market to strengthen, to have at least two players per position who can play any game. We will have to work with a lot of creativity. We know that today we are in a financial restructuring. President Osmar (Stabile) also called me for this, to work on this financial restructuring, and football is the flagship of any club. We will not do financial madness. And it was this financial madness that brought (the financial crisis). The brand is very strong.”, he stated.

Among the sectors considered priorities, Marcelo Paz pointed to the right-back position. Currently, Matheuzinho is the only player in the professional squad for the position, after Fagner’s departure and with João Vitor Jacaré having few appearances in the first team. The director also denied that there are ongoing negotiations for right-back Santiago Arias, who left Bahia at the end of last season.

“Right-back is a need, because we only have Matheuzinho, who is a great player and is in spectacular form. But we need someone to rotate with him. (Santiago) Arias is a name that was mentioned, but there are no ongoing negotiations. He’s a free agent, finished at Bahia, we know the player, everyone in the football department knows him, but there’s no negotiation at the moment.”, he said.

The executive also highlighted the search for speedy players for the attacking sector, mentioning options already present in the squad but acknowledging the lack in this role.

“We do need wingers, we need players for the flanks. There’s Dieguinho, who I think is an excellent player, a prospect who I believe will really take off this year. Vitinho also plays on the wing, sometimes more centrally, but there is a need for players in this role. We are working within the market.”, he added.

Finally, Marcelo Paz confirmed that Corinthians has been monitoring two names recently: Luis Mandaca, a midfielder from Juventude who came through the club’s youth system, and Dieguinho, a midfielder from Ceará.

“These are two players we know and follow, they had a very interesting Série A. Mandaca, who is even a product of Corinthians. He came from the terrão here. He’s been at Juventude for a few years now. Dieguinho played at Goiás, used to play as a right-back. At Ceará, more as a midfielder. He did a good job too. We are watching the market, there are broader possibilities, but these are names that are being observed and that may eventually have some kind of negotiation, not necessarily now, not necessarily a price negotiation at the moment.”, he concluded.

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