Deal with Torino falls through, Tchoca returns to Corinthians | OneFootball

Corinthians announced this Friday that the negotiation of defender João Pedro Tchoca with Torino, from Italy, has fallen through.

The defender was already in Italian territory to undergo medical exams and sign the contract, but was sent back to Timão. According to the Italian press, the 22-year-old player failed the physical tests. In a statement, Corinthians did not confirm the reason.

The alvinegro club claimed that the young athlete was released “in playing condition.” He was even listed for the match against Velo Clube last Sunday, in the Paulista Championship.

Upon his return, Tchoca will be reintegrated into the Corinthians squad, but will not be available to Dorival Júnior for the Supercopa do Brasil against Flamengo this Sunday, as he did not participate in training sessions throughout this week.

See Corinthians' statement:

“Sport Club Corinthians Paulista informs that it has received from Torino FC the official notification of the return of defender João Pedro.

João Pedro was released by Corinthians to present himself to Torino in playing condition. The athlete was even listed for the match against Velo Clube last Sunday (25).

The defender will be reintegrated into the squad and will return to training as normal, but will not be available for the Supercopa Rei in Brasília as he did not participate in this week’s activities.”

Frustrated negotiation

João Pedro Tchoca was to be loaned by Corinthians to Torino until the end of June this year, with an obligation to buy. The value of the deal was set at 1.5 million euros (about R$ 9.5 million at the current exchange rate).

As soon as Tchoca played ten matches for the Italian club for at least 45 minutes, the permanent purchase would be triggered for 4.5 million euros (R$ 28 million). There was also the possibility of a 1 million euro bonus if the player reached certain targets.

A product of Terrão, João Pedro Tchoca arrived at Corinthians in 2019, at the age of 16. He won the Copinha title in 2024, but did not stay at Timão and was loaned to Ceará. He returned to the club at the beginning of 2025 and began to earn his place in the team.

He played 33 matches and scored one goal for the main team, in addition to winning the Paulistão and Copa do Brasil titles last year. With his return, the defender will once again compete for a spot with Gustavo Henrique, André Ramalho, Cacá, and the newly arrived Gabriel Paulista.

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