Diniz gamble scores as Corinthians beat Platense in Libertadores opener | OneFootball

Coach Fernando Diniz had a dream debut for Corinthians. This Thursday, Timão beat Platense 2-0 at Estádio Ciudad de Vicente López in Buenos Aires, with goals from Kayke and Yuri Alberto, and began its Libertadores group-stage campaign with a win. The result also ends the team’s nine-match winless streak.

A winning bet

Diniz showed he has the magic touch in his first match in charge of the black-and-white side. A pick by the coach, young forward Kayke scored the goal that paved the way for the victory, seven minutes into the second half. The Terrão graduate received a pass from Garro, broke into the box, and delicately chipped it over goalkeeper Borgogno.

Standings situation

The win leaves Corinthians alone at the top of Group E with three points. Platense, meanwhile, starts at the bottom of the group with no points.

📋 Match summary

🟤 PLATENSE 0 x 2 CORINTHIANS ⚫

🏆 Competition: Libertadores (Matchday 1 of the group stage) 🏟️ Venue: Estádio Ciudad de Vicente López, in Buenos Aires (ARG) 📅 Date: April 9, 2026 (Thursday) ⏰ Kickoff time: 9 p.m. (Brasília time) 🟨 Yellow cards: André (Corinthians) 🟥 Red cards: Saborido (Platense)

Officiating

Goals:

🟤 Platense

Matías Borgogno; Juan Ignacio Saborido, Ignacio Vázquez (Raggio), Víctor Cuesta and Tomás Silva; Pablo Ferreira (Iván Gómez), Maximiliano Amarfil and Franco Zapiola (Gauto); Guido Mainero (Retamar), Augusto Lotti (Heredia) and Gonzalo Lencina. Coach: Walter Zunino

⚫ Corinthians

Hugo Souza; Matheuzinho, Gabriel Paulista, Gustavo Henrique and Matheus Bidu; Raniele (Allan), André (Carrillo), Breno Bidon and Rodrigo Garro (Jesse Lingard); Kayke (Vitinho) and Yuri Alberto (Pedro Raul). Coach: Fernando Diniz

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How the match unfolded

The first 30 minutes were cagey and lacked much excitement. Corinthians had a scare in the 31st minute. Mainero crossed into the box for Lencina, who headed toward the corner and forced goalkeeper Hugo Souza into a fine save.

Timão tried to play out from the back, but failed to move forward and struggled to create chances. The team’s first — and only — shot of the first half came in the 47th minute, when Yuri Alberto received a pass from Garro, found himself one-on-one with Borgogno, but hit it straight at the Platense goalkeeper.

Second half

Corinthians opened the scoring seven minutes into the second half. Yuri Alberto played it to Rodrigo Garro, who threaded a pass into Kayke’s run. The youngster beat the defenders for pace and chipped it over the onrushing Borgogno to put the ball in the back of the net.

Platense responded in the 17th minute. This time, after a cross into the box, Vázquez powered a header that was once again saved by Hugo Souza. However, Timão doubled its lead in the 24th minute. Garro played Yuri Alberto through, and he went clear of Borgogno before striking with his left foot to score the visitors’ second.

Upcoming matches

Platense

Corinthians

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