Dorival Júnior hails Milans' debut, explains Corinthians' caution | OneFootball

On the evening of last Sunday (25), Corinthians visited Velo Clube at Estádio Benito Agnelo Castellano for the fifth round of the first phase of the 2026 Campeonato Paulista, and won 1-0, with a goal scored by striker Yuri Alberto. After the match, in a press conference, coach Dorival Júnior analyzed the performance of right-back Pedro Milans, who made his debut for the club.

“I think it was a good debut, he had been out for more than 40 days, I imagined that maybe he wouldn't be able to play until the end, which is why we made the substitution at that moment, but he responded very well, very positively. He didn't seem exhausted, as happens with most players when they're out for a long time.”, the coach began.

Photo: Rodrigo Coca/Ag. Corinthians

“He hasn't really had any tactical training with our team yet, and even so, he gave a very consistent response. I think he's a player who can develop a great condition within the team, let's hope he keeps evolving.”, he continued.

Explaining the criteria used for selecting players and managing playing time, Dorival Júnior emphasized his concern with physical wear and the risk of injuries, especially in a squad that has seen many departures and is still awaiting reinforcements.

“It's a bit of everything. First, excessive wear for an early season period that we didn't have. Second, a sequence can indeed cause an injury. And that's what we're trying to avoid, because, as I said, we still have a small squad. Some players have already been contacted with a pre-agreement, but have not yet been presented, so all of this still makes our day-to-day a bit difficult.”, he commented.

“We have a much smaller squad than last year. Many more players left than arrived. And that's taking away our ability to have even two teams playing, which would be ideal for this moment. Field conditions, pitch, wear, all of this you have to evaluate. It's the next day that will give you the information.”, Dorival continued.

“You might get there tomorrow and we have a player who might be feeling something, but you'll only get a clearer idea the next day or two days after the match. So, you take all these factors into account and then you evaluate, together with the Physiology Department, the conditions that were reported to them, through the mechanisms and processes we have, the evaluations that were done and the results that happened, so that then, together, we can make a decision.”, he added.

Thinking about the schedule and decisive commitments, Dorival Júnior detailed the planning so that Corinthians arrives in better physical condition for the Supercopa and the rest of the season.

“That's the schedule, for us to have all the players fit for those two games, the opening of the Brazilian Championship and then a decisive match. From there, I'm sure we'll have more options and we'll look to pick up the pace in the championships, but it's a decision, so I can't take risks in such a crucial moment. What would you do in my place? Would you hold back your team a bit so they could theoretically arrive in better condition for such an important game like Sunday's, or would you play them in every match, knowing that you would be running a big risk of a possible injury, which we're trying to avoid.”, he said.

“Whether it's right or wrong, we never know, but the decision has to be made after everything that's been gathered, all the data provided and what we're observing. Now, in the next game, I'll have to hold back 2, 3 or 4 players so that on Sunday we have them all in condition. So I think these changes were important.”, the coach continued.

Asked about a specific request for analysis involving striker Rony, the coach preferred to be cautious and avoid individual comments at this time. During the last week, there were reports of possible interest from Corinthians in the player, but there are no negotiations underway.

“If you want to ask another question, but I'll only talk about a player once we have them here, about one or another player, that's all.”, said Dorival Júnior emphatically.

Finally, the coach assessed the schedule faced by Corinthians so far and considered the scenario satisfactory, even acknowledging that it is far from ideal due to the squad's context and the heavy sequence of games.

“Look, it could perhaps be a bit better if we had a more complete squad and if everyone was fit to play. That wasn't the case. So, for me, I think it's satisfactory up to this point. Is it ideal? No. But it's within expectations, given the short recovery time, the little time to work, and the fact that we've already had almost three derbies in a row: Red Bull Bragantino, Santos, and São Paulo, very tough games for the start of the season and only seven days.”, he concluded.

After facing Velo Clube away, Corinthians now turns its attention to the debut in the Brazilian Championship. Next Wednesday (28), at 8pm (Brasília time), the Alvinegro hosts Bahia, in Santos, at Vila Belmiro, for the first round of the competition.

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