Corinthians won the 2015 Campeonato Brasileiro with a 12-point lead over their nearest rival, Atletico Mineiro. They lost only five games all season while compiling a goal difference of +40, earning direct qualification to the second stage of the 2016 Copa Libertadores. They simply dominated all challengers while scoring a league best 71 goals.
Unfortunately for Corinthians, the performances of their key players also put Chinese club owners and their seemingly limitless wealth on high alert. Since the end of the national championship in December, Corinthians have lost Jadson, their leading scorer, 2015 Bola de Ouro winner Renato Augusto and Brazilian internationals Ralf and Gil to Chinese clubs.
While the total transfer fees for these players amounts to over $26 million, the departures of 4 key players had Corinthian supporters fearing, rather than celebrating, the beginning of the 2016 Copa Libertadores.
However, after the completion of the final games in group play, Corinthians emerged on top of group 8. In a group containing Paraguay’s Cerro Porteno, Colombia’s Santa Fe and Chile’s Cobresal, Corinthians claimed the top sot and the third overall seed for the round of 16.
On Wednesday, they put an exclamation point on their performances with a 6-0 thumping of Cobresal. The highlight of the match was attacking midfielder Marlone’s fantastic chest trap and side volley.
It’s performances like this that have seen Corinthians manager Tite linked with the Brazilian national team job as the replacement for the under fire Dunga.
Luckily for Corinthians supporters, who’ve grown used to seeing their idols leave this year, Tite has strongly denied the link.
Corinthians return to action in the Copa Libertadores on April 27 against Uruguay side Nacional. The return leg in Sao Paulo will take place on May 4.
