Scorer of the goal in Corinthians’ partial victory 1-0 over Cruzeiro this Wednesday (12/10), in the first game of the semi-final of the Copa do Brasil 2025, the Dutch striker Memphis Depay has a contract with Timão until the end of July 2026. The player is 31 years old and will turn 32 on February 13th.
A renewal after the 2026 World Cup period has not yet been debated. The president of Corinthians, Osmar Stabile, remained cautious when speaking about the subject on November 27th, at a CBF event, in São Paulo (SP).
– We can’t talk about that at the moment, there is a contract in force. I can’t talk about negotiations at the moment. We will work within what the contract establishes. When it’s close to expiration, we’ll talk. I don’t know what will happen until then. Football is very dynamic, I can’t talk about the future – commented the director at the Summit CBF Academy.
TIMAN’S GOAL! 🔟
Two strokes. Opportunism and open scoring for the @Corinthians. It’s from @Memphis ! 🦅 #CopaBetanoDoBrasil pic.twitter.com/HI2OLwApUq
— Copa do Brasil (@CopaDoBrasilCBF) December 11, 2025
Memphis’ situation is complex financially. The sum of the player’s salary and image rights costs Corinthians approximately R$4.7 million per month. Furthermore, the player continues to live in a luxury hotel in São Paulo and Timão pays around R$250,000 per month. The athlete himself has already offered to find cheaper accommodation to alleviate the club’s costs. However, his legal team in Europe advised him not to make any decision until Corinthians progresses in paying a debt worth around R$23 million.
The club has not yet paid off amounts relating to gloves, bonuses for games, participation in goals and prizes, in addition to the monthly housing payments stipulated in the contract. Memphis’ lawyers also fear new financial issues, as Corinthians has delayed contractual commitments since the athlete’s arrival in September 2024. An agreement is in place for the club to pay three installments of R$1 million in the coming months and, in March, pay off the remainder in a single transfer of R$20 million.
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Memphis Depay: what he thinks about Corinthians
Despite the difficulties, Memphis has not put obstacles in the way of the proposals presented and is even willing to make contractual benefits more flexible. He likes Brazil, believes that Corinthians is the best environment to remain competitive and is open to dialogue. What has bothered the Dutchman, however, is the recurrence of behind-the-scenes leaks from the club to the press, a situation that, in his view, repeatedly puts him in confrontation with the fans due to internal political interests. The release of the minutes of the Corinthians Guidance Council (Cori) citing his housing expenses was one of the episodes that displeased him.
In parallel, the Memphis contract became the target of disputes within the Guidance Council. Some of the advisors consider the agreement signed under Augusto Melo’s administration to be excessively onerous and question the player’s cost-benefit ratio. Cori requested access to the signed documents and is awaiting clarification from managers involved in its hiring. The club’s legal director even classified the agreement’s figures as “outside of reality”.
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