Diniz sees Corinthians sharper, backs Pereira, eyes Libertadores decider | OneFootball

The 2-1 loss to Flamengo last Sunday (13) at the Maracanã stretched Corinthians’ negative run in the Brazilian Championship to five matches. Despite the result, Fernando Diniz saw a change in the team’s attitude and said the squad had absorbed the lessons from its recent setbacks.

During the post-match press conference, the coach also defended Matheus Pereira, once again praised youngster Iago Machado, commented on Kaio César’s current form, and spoke about squad players who could enter the Brazilian national team’s radar. He also gave an update on Yuri Alberto’s recovery and stressed that all attention is fully focused on Estudiantes.

Photo: Rodrigo Gazzanel / Corinthians

Asked how to ensure the intensity shown at the Maracanã would be maintained in the upcoming matches, especially amid a run of five Brasileirão defeats, Diniz acknowledged that there are no certainties in football, but highlighted the group’s commitment.

“We don’t have guarantees in life, do we? But I can give a better guarantee. And I can guarantee that, right now, the players are committed to doing their best, and I truly believe they have learned, that we have learned together, the lessons those four defeats taught us over this period.”

Diniz defends Matheus Pereira and explains why players were rested

Matheus Pereira was also a topic at the press conference. The midfielder started against Flamengo and stayed on the field for the full 90 minutes. Diniz gave a positive assessment of his performance and highlighted the player’s role in organizing the team as well as his off-the-ball work.

In the same answer, the coach explained why some players were rested with the decisive Libertadores clash in mind. According to him, André Carrillo showed signs of fatigue that could have developed into an injury, while Memphis Depay had very overloaded muscles. Gustavo Henrique also stayed in São Paulo to focus on recovery work.

Diniz also returned to the subject of Iago Machado. At 17, the center-back made his professional debut precisely against Flamengo, in a packed Maracanã, and received more praise from the manager.

“I think Matheus had a good game. He’s a player who has been coming on, trains well, a very talented player, a player with a lot of technique. And I, personally, really liked Matheus’ game. I think he was involved, both on the ball—in the first half, when we were having more difficulty, he made himself available a lot to help organize the team—he was very committed defensively, a very intelligent player, and I think he’s a player who has a lot to offer Corinthians. As for Wednesday’s match, no one is worried. In principle, everyone believes they’ll be recovered, but they were all very concerned about today’s game. Carrillo came off because he was on the verge of getting injured. He hadn’t been injured in the match, but he was feeling his leg, showing signs that something could go wrong.

Memphis, in a run of games he hadn’t had before, was completely worn out, his muscles very tight, and he needed rest. He was the first one I knew I was going to rest in this game, otherwise he wouldn’t recover for Wednesday. Gustavo Henrique also came out of the last match very heavily loaded, and we decided to leave them there so they could recover fully. Regarding Iago specifically, I didn’t have just one conversation with Iago, I had several conversations with him. This player has everything to have a very bright future. He’s a different kind of player. He’s young, but some players have a certain fit with what the world of football requires, and what I see is that Iago can be one of those very special players, someone who can build a beautiful career. It’s very rare to see a 17-year-old center-back able to train and then play today with the poise he showed against a very strong team and under the pressure of today’s match.”

Call-ups and new names on the national team’s radar

Another topic addressed was the presence of Corinthians players in the Brazilian national team. Hugo Souza, Matheuzinho, and Breno Bidon were called up for Brazil’s upcoming fixtures, while André had previously appeared on the preliminary list.

Diniz celebrated the space the players have earned and mentioned another player who, in his view, could be moving closer to a call-up: Matheus Bidu. The coach praised the left-back’s defensive improvement and even compared him to Marcelo, formerly of Real Madrid and Brazil, because of his technical traits and reading of the game.

Before that, however, the coach made it clear that he is not yet focusing on the next FIFA international break. His attention is on the matches before the pause.

“We’ll try to make the best possible use of the FIFA break. I’m not even thinking about the FIFA break. We have one of the most important matches in the club’s history on Wednesday and then we have Fluminense on Sunday. After that, we’ll think about the FIFA break. As for the players, it’s a source of great joy. Corinthians, routinely, has always had players called up and went through a period without many players being called up. It was very good to have the three players called up. I think André, if he were playing, would also be on that list; he was on the preliminary list. I think Bidu is also a player who increasingly points toward a call-up scenario. I’ve been saying since I arrived at Corinthians: I don’t see a left-back who stands out as much as Bidu does. He has improved a lot defensively, he is an extremely technical player, a player who reminds me a little of Marcelo, in the way he plays, in his technical quality, in the way he interprets the game. And there are other Corinthians players too who may, in the future, appear on a list.”

Kaio César receives more praise

Scorer of Corinthians’ goal in the 1-1 draw with Estudiantes in Argentina last Wednesday (9), Kaio César was also mentioned at the press conference. Diniz recalled that he had already wanted to work with the forward before arriving at Parque São Jorge.

For the coach, the 22-year-old is becoming increasingly accustomed to the demands of representing the club and still has room to grow.

“He’s another player in that situation. Kaio César is also a player who is putting himself on the Brazilian scene, whereas he was practically an unknown player. He played very little at Coritiba, went to Portugal and then to Arabia. He’s a 22-year-old who is getting more and more used to wearing the Corinthians shirt and delivering. I also believe Kaio César is a player with a great future ahead of him. I even tried to take him to Vasco. We were in the race, but I arrived a little late at that time. Luckily, I was able to reunite with him here. I also think this player will keep bringing joy to the Corinthians fans, and more and more of it.”

Yuri Alberto still has no timetable for a return

Diniz also updated Yuri Alberto’s situation. The striker is still recovering and, according to the coach, had a complication during the process due to fibrosis. Because of that, the club is remaining cautious and is still not publicly working with an exact date for his return.

In the same answer, the coach again looked ahead to the clash with Estudiantes. After the 1-1 draw in La Plata, Corinthians and the Argentine side will decide a place in the Libertadores semifinals this Wednesday (16) at 9:30 p.m. Brasília time at Neo Química Arena.

“As for Yuri, we’re proceeding with every precaution. There was a small issue in his recovery—I’ve already talked about this in other press conferences—because of fibrosis, and the sooner he comes back, the better. But I don’t have a specific timetable today for when Yuri will return. There were three questions, right? The other one… So, I think Estudiantes, I’ve already spoken a little about this, is a very qualified team that knows how to play away from home, and we’re going to prepare, we’re already preparing in the best way possible, to give everything we have on Wednesday and play a great match. Right now, the story is Corinthians. Fluminense comes later. Fluminense comes after Wednesday. Right now, only Estudiantes is on our minds.”

With the defeat at the Maracanã, Corinthians remained on 32 points and suffered its fifth straight loss in the Brazilian Championship. The domestic situation, however, will temporarily take a back seat. Since the first leg of the Libertadores quarterfinal ended in a draw, whoever wins at Neo Química Arena will advance directly to the semifinals. If it ends level again, qualification will be decided on penalties.

After the continental showdown, Timão returns to Brasileirão action on Sunday (20), when it hosts Fluminense. Until then, as Fernando Diniz stressed, Estudiantes alone is the center of attention at Parque São Jorge.

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