Fernando Lázaro’s Corinthians already have a pair of starting defenders and the low average of goals conceded pleases the coaching staff. Gil and Bruno Méndez consolidated as the main duo, leaving Balbuena on the bench, and should be kept for Sunday’s classic, against Santos, in Vila Belmiro, for the 11th round of the Paulista Championship.
O my helm compare here, then, the average of goals conceded with the pair in the field in relation to the alternatives. In a complicated phase and criticized by the fans, veteran defender Fabián Balbuena has not been able to establish himself at Timão. In 2023, in four of the five opportunities that the Paraguayan was on the field, Corinthians was leaked – with him among the starters, the team only did not concede goals from Água Santa, in the second round of Paulistão, at Neo Química Arena, when they formed a duo with Bruno Mendez. There are five goals conceded in five games, with an average of one per game.
Bruno Méndez and Gil played in five opportunities as a starting pair in the Corinthians defense and only conceded goals against the Palmeiras team, in Derbi at the Neo Química Arena. In the other four matches, against Mirassol, Portuguesa, Botafogo-SP and Inter de Limeira, the team was not leaked by the opponent. A average goals conceded improves to just 0.2 per game.
There are three matches in a row with the starting duo of the Uruguayan and the Brazilian, who should be kept in the classic against Santos. Balbuena’s last appearance took place against São Bernardo, when the defender missed a minute into the game and committed a penalty after an individual error.
Who waits for opportunities is the duo Caetano and Murillo. Young and left-handed, the defenders still haven’t received minutes in the 2023 season. Already qualified for the Paulista quarterfinals, the duo is waiting for the confrontation against Santo André, after the classic, to receive a chance among the starters at Neo Química Arena.
Corinthians games in 2023 with Bruno Méndez in the starting lineup and Gil in the starting lineup
- Corinthians 3 x 0 Mirassol – 02/19/2023 – Paulista 2023
- Corinthians 2 x 2 Palmeiras – 02/16/2023 – Paulista 2023
- Portuguesa 0 x 0 Corinthians – 02/12/2023 – Paulista 2023
- Corinthians 2 x 0 Botafogo-SP – 05/02/2023 – Paulista 2023
- Inter de Limeira 0 x 0 Corinthians – 01/21/2023 – Paulista 2023
See more at: Bruno Méndez and Gil.
