Corinthians staff face dilemma before Paulista finale, find out why | OneFootball

The Corinthians committee, led by coach Dorival Júnior, is facing a major dilemma for the last round of the Campeonato Paulista. Timão will face São Bernardo this Sunday, starting at 8:30 PM (Brasília time), at the Estádio Primeiro de Maio, in the interior of São Paulo.

Dorival's Corinthians reached the last round of the State Championship without being qualified for the quarterfinals. The team depends only on itself to advance to the knockout stage, but the technical committee is cautious about the players' physical condition, especially after a long sequence of games.

For Corinthians, an elimination in the first phase of the Paulista would bring criticism from part of the fans, despite the team having credits after winning the Copa do Brasil in 2025 and the Supercopa in 2026. On the other hand, a potential qualification would bring the team closer to the championship title.

In the last two games, Dorival Júnior fielded the best Corinthians has to offer. Timão played with the main team in the home defeat to Palmeiras, in the Paulista, and also in the victory over Red Bull Bragantino at the Neo Química Arena.

Given this scenario, the committee faces the dilemma of either betting on their best players to secure the spot and risking further injuries due to accumulated fatigue or relying on a mixed team to try for qualification while preserving the players with more minutes. In the match against Massa Bruta, for instance, Corinthians was already without André and Breno Bidon, who were recently injured.

It was precisely because of understanding that he had a short squad that Dorival Júnior was so emphatic in demanding reinforcements. The coach requested new replacement pieces to give more rotation to the squad and avoid injuries, as happened throughout last season.

“We received Allan after a very complicated negotiation, in which we have to greatly value the club's football department and the president, who spared no efforts to seek specific reinforcements, even without investments. And suddenly, from one round to another, you end up without Kaio César, Martínez from the start, André, Bidon, Charles, even in training. Allan, who arrived and worked only 30 minutes, was already willing to be on the field. The difficulties are very great on a daily basis. We had problems with Bahia. Charles was an unknown, but he achieved recovery,” explained the coach.

“It is for you to see that when we talk about having a more composed squad, it is because of everything we went through, and it will not be different from now on. We will have difficulties in assembling a team from one to another, from a Wednesday, Thursday to a Sunday. This, unfortunately, will happen with many teams in Brazil due to this change [of calendar] that happened,” he added.

Situation in the Medical Department

Currently, Corinthians has four players in the medical department: Breno Bidon (right thigh strain), André (ligament injury in the left ankle), Hugo (surgery on the right knee), and Kaio César (muscle injury in the right thigh).

Angileri, who renewed his contract with the alvinegro club until the end of the year, is still in the process of physical reconditioning.

What's at stake for Corinthians in the last round?

Corinthians reaches the last round of the Campeonato Paulista without being qualified for the quarterfinals. However, the Alvinegro is not in such a complicated situation and depends only on itself to advance to the knockout stage.

Timão occupies the fifth position in the table, with 11 points. In this scenario, a simple victory against São Bernardo is enough for Corinthians to secure a spot in the quarterfinals of the State Championship. If Red Bull Bragantino and Portuguesa stumble, the team can still finish the first phase in third place.

A draw also takes Timão to the knockout stage, except for a single scenario. Botafogo-SP and Capivariano cannot draw, while Guarani, Santos, and São Paulo need to win their respective games. Peixe would still need a victory by four goals or more to eliminate the Alvinegro paulista.

In case of a defeat to São Bernardo, Corinthians' situation becomes complicated. With possible victories from São Paulo, Santos, and Mirassol, the team from Itaquera would say goodbye to the Paulista.

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