Memphis Depay gave Corinthians this Wednesday (10) an important advantage over Cruzeiro in the first leg of the Copa do Brasil semi-final. With a goal from the Dutchman, the São Paulo team won the match at Mineirão 1-0.
The two teams will meet again on Sunday (14), this time, at Corinthians’ home, in Itaquera. The ball will roll at Neo Química Arena at 6pm (Brasília time). To advance to the decision, the home team will have the advantage of playing for a draw.
If the team from Minas Gerais wins by a goal difference, the place will be determined on penalties.
Favorites before the ball rolled due to their more balanced season, especially in the Brazilian Championship, in which they competed for the title and finished in third place, the team from Minas Gerais saw Corinthians open the scoring in the first half, in the 22nd minute, when Carrillo launched the ball into the penalty area, the defense tried to clear the ball, but the remainder was left with the Corinthian number 10, who headed the ball in and then just deflected it into the goal.
Historical idol of Corinthians, but now wearing the celestial shirt, goalkeeper Cássio didn’t even have time to react as he saw the ball die in the back of the net.
The goal did not come by chance. Even away from home, Dorival Júnior’s team adopted an offensive stance and, for a large part of the first stage, dominated the game. Depay was the team’s main name on the field.
The Dutchman was substituted 28 minutes into the second half, as part of his plan to play at a high level. He arrived at the match having recently recovered from bone edema in his left knee and underwent intensive training, which included special programming and even training in two periods, to face Cruzeiro.
Despite the small advantage, after half-time, Corinthians played to manage the score and try their luck with a counterattack. Cruzeiro, in turn, pressed on in search of a draw, but faced an inspired night from goalkeeper Hugo, who made at least three important saves to secure the victory for the Parque São Jorge team.
“The first half is very important. A difficult game, because Cruzeiro’s team is good. But we won a goal and defended well. The defenders were very concentrated and now relax, rest, recover and prepare for the next game”, celebrated Memphis Depay.
After finishing the Brazilian Championship in only 13th place, Corinthians started to treat the Copa do Brasil as the great chance to save their season, win a place in the 2026 Libertadores and also pocket a nice prize — the champion will receive R$77 million. Hence the effort of the black and white technical committee to get the Dutchman in top shape.
The same care was also taken with Rodrigo Garro, another who recently left the medical department. In the case of the Argentine, Dorival chose to only put him on the field in the second stage. In the return match, the coach will be able to count on him again among the starters, forming the attacking trio alongside Depay and Yuri Alberto.
Despite the black and white advantage in the first game, for midfielder Lucas Silva, Cruzeiro has the capacity to seek the result at Corinthians’ home. “It was a very balanced game. In big moments, especially in the second half, we controlled more, had more possession of the ball, got more into the opponent’s attack”, he said. “We keep our heads calm, we leave here with our heads held high to go there and play a great game there,” he added.
In the other semi-final, Vasco and Fluminense play the first leg this Thursday (11), at Maracanã, at 8pm (Brasília time). The return game will be at the same stadium, next Sunday (14), at 8:30 pm.
