Still without reinforcements, Coritiba is betting on “recovering players”

The main example is midfielder Thiago Santos. After a difficult start at the club, with no space in the team, the experienced 36-year-old player managed to regain his place and ended the first half as the absolute starter in the Alviverde midfield, surpassing competitors such as Vini Paulista, Wallisson and Fernando Sobral.

In Seabra’s assessment, the individual evolution of athletes over the last few months allowed Coxa to reduce some shortcomings identified at the beginning of the season. Therefore, the board intends to act selectively in the transfer window, seeking only specific reinforcements that really raise the level of competitiveness.

Another case cited internally is that of defender Rodrigo Moledo, who gained space after starter Maicon was injured. After a period of physical recovery and adaptation, the defender finished the first part of the Brazilian Championship with good performances, demonstrating himself as a reliable option on the bench.

Finally, a third example is that of striker Rodrigo Rodrigues. The player is in the final stages of recovery from knee surgery and, while Coxa has difficulty finding a center forward in the market and suffers from a lack of options in the squad, Rodrigues will once again be an important option.

Player overcame elimination in Coritiba

Since arriving at Coritiba, Thiago Santos has played 17 matches. When he started at the club, he was used as a starting defender in the elimination of Coxa by Operário in the semi-finals of the Campeonato Paranaense, at Couto Pereira. At the time, he was playing only his second game as a starter.

After that game, Thiago spent around two months without starting a match. During this period, he played for just 45 minutes combined.

The turnaround began in April. Used as a midfielder, his original position, he was a starter in the goalless draw with Santos, at Vila Belmiro, in the first game of the fifth phase of the Copa do Brasil.

Since then, he began to gain momentum and show progress, appearing among the starters in Coritiba’s last five matches before the World Cup break, against Grêmio, Vitória, Santos, Bahia and Flamengo. During the period, Coxa won two victories and suffered three defeats.

Upcoming challenges for the Coritiba squad.

The work carried out with Thiago Santos serves as a reference for other players that Coritiba believes can technically recover. One of the main cases is that of midfielder Wallisson, who was acquired by Coxa for the season

Highlight of the 2025 Series B promotion campaign, the midfielder has not yet managed to repeat the same performance he had with Mozart. In 2026, he played 16 matches and faced difficulties on and off the field.

At the beginning of the year, Wallisson suffered a hand problem that sidelined him for around a week and required hospitalization. With that, it already started physically.

In addition, there was also a family episode involving the father, which had national repercussions and after being left out of the match against Vitória, in the 14th round, due to Fernando Seabra’s technical choice, football director Jorge Andrade and the coach spoke with the player at CT da Graciosa to reinforce confidence.

However, in addition to Walisson, the club also believes in the recovery of athletes who had few opportunities in the first part of the year, such as striker Keno, who is recovering from injury, and midfielder Fernando Sobral.

The internal expectation is that when they return from the World Cup break, these players will increase the squad’s competitiveness for the remainder of Series A. Coxa will perform again on June 17th, at CT da Graciosa