Garro says Corinthians were below par, backs Dorival after Fluminense loss | OneFootball

Corinthians’ 3-1 loss to Fluminense on the night of last Wednesday (1), at Maracanã Stadium, in the ninth round of the Brazilian Championship, further worsened the delicate situation the black-and-white side is going through in the competition. After the final whistle, midfielder Rodrigo Garro spoke in the mixed zone and analyzed the team’s performance, acknowledging that Corinthians fell short of expectations during the match.

The Argentine highlighted the team’s difficulty in putting into practice what had been worked on throughout the week, while also stressing the frustration of the winless run. According to him, despite a slight improvement during part of the match, the overall performance was far from what the squad and the fans expect, increasing the pressure for an immediate response in the competition.

Photo: Rodrigo Coca/Ag. Corinthians

“I understand the fans. We play for them, and we know they make a huge effort to be here, to be at every ground where we play. Talking about the game, at no point were we able to carry out what we trained. Then in the second half, around that point, we improved a little, even with one player less, but at no point were we the Corinthians we expect, that we as a group expect, much less what the fans expect,” Garro began.

“I think that in moments like this, we have to keep our heads down and focus on work, have the humility to listen and to correct things, but it has to be as quickly as possible, because we have the Brasileirão ahead of us, we set out to compete at the top and we haven’t been able to get three points, and that personally bothers me a lot, it makes me very upset, very sad, because this year that was the objective: to stay in the mix, to be protagonists in the Brasileirão and also have the Copa Libertadores, which is a dream of ours,” he continued.

Garro also commented on his own performance and his partnership with Breno Bidon in midfield. The number 8 avoided making an in-depth analysis of the duo given the team’s collective performance, which was below ideal, but admitted that the team can play much better football than what was shown at the Maracanã. The player stressed that the level shown in the match should not be used as a benchmark and acknowledged the need for both individual and collective improvement if Corinthians are to turn things around this season.

“I think today Breno played a little wider, but as I said, I don’t know if today’s game is a good one to analyze us. Of course, we played far below what we’re capable of, so I don’t know if I can calmly make an analysis right now of how we played, but I know we can play much better. I’ll speak for myself, and I know we can play better than we did today and better than we have been playing,” the Argentine pointed out.

Despite the negative moment, the midfielder made a point of reinforcing the black-and-white squad’s ambition this season. For Garro, wearing the Corinthians shirt means fighting for titles in every competition, regardless of the team’s current situation in the Brasileirão. He also stressed that the group remains united, with no loss of internal confidence, and that there is accountability within the squad itself, which, according to him, could be decisive in getting back on track in the coming matches.

“When you wear this shirt, I’ll speak for myself and for the group, when you wear this shirt, you dream, think, and sleep wanting to fight for everything. Whether it’s the Brasileirão, when we played the Paulista, when we’re going to play the Copa Libertadores, the Copa do Brasil, you can’t choose, we don’t choose which competition we’re going to fight for. So there are still many games left in the Brasileirão, and we’ve already shown what we’re capable of,” the player said.

“Yes, today we are in a difficult moment, but it’s exactly in moments like this that we have to stick together. I also understand the fans’ complaints, I understand them, because, as I said, we’re in a moment where we haven’t been able to show what we can do, where we haven’t really been able to give a response. We are demanding a lot from ourselves, inside the stadium we know it, inside the club we know it, and there is a huge level of accountability among us,” he continued.

“But today there’s no point in talking, we just have to work, as I said, with humility, accept criticism in order to grow, to be better, and I have no doubts about the group we have, I don’t doubt my teammates, I have no doubts about the group. This is not a moment where any distrust should begin to appear among us, because we know what we’ve already achieved, and we know we have to take Corinthians much higher than where we’ve already taken it,” the Argentine added.

Finally, Garro defended coach Dorival Júnior and rejected the idea of pointing fingers over Corinthians’ current situation. The midfielder emphasized that the responsibility must be shared by everyone at the club and highlighted the importance of unity in overcoming this rough patch. According to the player, the group understands the weight of the shirt and the outside pressure, but believes the path to recovery lies in work, humility, and a response on the pitch in the very next round.

“Yes, the coach, I also understand his stance as a leader, but I also think it’s a little unfair at this moment for us to blame either Dorival or the group. We have to stick together, as I said, we mustn’t put the blame on one person, because it’s very easy right now to take the responsibility away from the coach or point the finger at the players,” he said.

“I understand that there has to be a lot of accountability, because the team we’re playing for and the shirt we’re representing are massive, so on our side we know the responsibility we carry, the hearts we carry, the emotions we represent on the pitch. So now is the time to work even harder and on Sunday give a response, we need that,” Rodrigo Garro concluded.

With the setback, Corinthians remain in 11th place in the Brazilian Championship with ten points, and could move closer to the relegation zone depending on the other results in the round. The team’s next match will be against Internacional on Sunday at 7:30 p.m. 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.