Yuri Alberto hails Corinthians win, savours goal and eyes run with Diniz | OneFootball

Scorer of one of the goals in Corinthians’ 2-0 win over Platense last Thursday (09), in their opening match of the Conmebol Libertadores group stage, forward Yuri Alberto spoke in the mixed zone after the game. The number 9 highlighted the importance of the result, which ended the team’s run of nine matches without a win this season, and praised the collective effort to overcome the difficult spell.

According to Sofascore data, Yuri Alberto started the match, played 86 minutes, and received a 7.6 rating, standing out as one of the best players of the match alongside Kayke. Having recently undergone surgery to remove his third molar (wisdom tooth), the striker was still able to take the field and contribute directly to the away win.

Photo: Rodrigo Coca / Corinthians

“Glory to God. Since Monday I’ve been dealing with a lot of tooth pain. But, thank God, I was able to be in good enough shape to play today. I took a few hits out there, but thank God the stitches didn’t open either, so it was worth it. This effort was worth it, a great win and a great goal to help the team,” said Yuri.

With the goal, Yuri reached 81 goals in a Corinthians shirt and commented on the beginning of the work under Fernando Diniz, highlighting the expectation of offensive improvement under the new coach.

“Well, man, my first contact with him was today, I mean in the game, in terms of on-field situations, because I didn’t take part in the other two training sessions. But I hope he can help us a lot so we can have some variations, some plays where we can have a bit more depth, like today, with Garro having a little more freedom to find those balls, because he’s very good with those final passes. So for him to have that freedom, to be able to get those balls on the last line, that’s going to help us a lot up front, like on Kayke’s play and on my goal too. So we can create a bit more, vary a bit more, so we don’t stay the way we were in the last few games. It was getting a little, how can I put it, a little too predictable already. So hopefully we can be very happy together, he can help us a lot to create great plays like today, and we can defend very well too, above all, because if we don’t concede, we can create chances, score, and win the game.”

The striker also analyzed the chances he had during the game and joked about shooting with both feet.

“Yeah, man, wow, I was missing some leg on that one. I’d just made a sprint, I came back, I’d already made the run, so, man, my leg was heavy, my head was too... But thank God, man, thank God, I was able to score another great goal there, a beautiful pass from Garro. And with my good foot, right, like they say, the good foot is the left one,” he said.

Besides his performance on the field, Yuri also spoke about a recent personal moment involving an Easter initiative and a meeting with a young fan, emphasizing the importance of that kind of connection.

“Man, it was nice, it was really cool. The family was very calm, very humble too. And my mother looked at me and said, ‘Wow, Yuri, he really reminds me of you when you were a kid.’ A real little rascal face. It was a memorable moment, it was really great for us to give the family Easter eggs too, him as well. And being able to give him the shirt, I know I was able to create a special moment in his life there. I’m very grateful to God for that opportunity.”

One of the longest-serving players in the current squad, Yuri also commented on his journey at Corinthians and his leadership role within the group, especially in moments of pressure.

“Very happy, right, man? I’m already heading into my fifth season here at Corinthians. I’ve been through a lot, very special moments, really difficult moments too, so I already know very well how things work here. And this week was a very complicated one. We know it’s not normal and it’s hard too, right? Because I understand, it was a complicated week, and we were on a very bad run of games too. So we have to understand that, get our heads straight, and get back to playing football and having them on our side, because we know that will be very important. We need them this Sunday now, we’re going to have an important home match against Palmeiras, a derby, and having the fans on our side will be very important.”

Finally, the striker analyzed the team’s recent spell, celebrated the end of the negative run, highlighted the importance of looking ahead this season, and lastly spoke about preparations for the Derby.

“It’s hard to say, right, man? Especially when I’m in the middle of it. I was able to play in the last few games, because I’d also been injured, and when I came back we ended up not doing so well, even with me there. I don’t know what might have happened, but that’s in the past. We know we have to look ahead and think about the next games now. Very happy that we were able to break this streak of nine games without a win, without positive results, and today, in an important game like this one, Libertadores, we did it. A great game, a great game, man. Now it’s time to recover, the game for us already starts today, so let’s go, we need the fans with us,” he concluded.

With the result, Corinthians begin their Libertadores campaign with three points and now turn their attention to the derby against Palmeiras next Sunday at Neo Química Arena.

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