Coritiba and Santos meet Wednesday at 19:30 at Couto Pereira in Curitiba, with a place in the Copa do Brasil round of 16 on the line. The return leg of the fifth phase starts from a 0-0 draw in the first match at Vila Belmiro, and any winner advances. If the game ends level again, even with goals, the tie goes straight to penalties.
For Coritiba, the night arrives with pressure attached. The team has not won since beating Atlético-MG 2-0 on April 19 in Série A, and the run since then includes the draw with Santos in the first leg, losses to Grêmio and Vitória in the Brasileirão and last Saturday’s 2-2 draw with Internacional. That leaves Fernando Seabra’s side without a victory in four matches, with the coach expected to restore defender Tiago Cóser and striker Breno Lopes to the lineup.
Tiago Cóser missed the weekend after being suspended for the red card he received against Vitória in Salvador, while Breno Lopes was rested because of a respiratory infection. Coritiba’s probable lineup has Pedro Rangel, Tinga, Jacy, Tiago Cóser, Bruno Melo, Sebastián Gómez, Vini Paulista, Josué, Lucas Ronier, Breno Lopes and Pedro Rocha. The absences list includes Fabinho, Keno, Pedro Morisco, Maicon and Rodrigo Rodrigues.
Santos arrives with a more encouraging result behind it after beating Bragantino 2-0, a win that offered some relief in a season that has swung between promising spells and flat stretches. The club is also trying to avoid a repeat of last year, when it was eliminated in the same phase by CRB in Maceió. Wednesday’s match gives it a chance to move one round deeper and keep the cup run alive.
Cuca has Gabriel Menino and Gustavinho back in midfield after injuries, while Luan Peres is out with a fracture in the fifth metatarsal of his left hand. Santos’s probable lineup includes Gabriel Brazão, Igor Vinicius, Adonis Frías, Lucas Veríssimo, Escobar, João Schmidt, Oliva, Gabriel Bontempo, Barreal, Rollheiser and Neymar. The coach is still shaping a preferred starting XI and weighing how to use Gabigol and Neymar together, but for now the immediate task is simpler: get through Coritiba and into the round of 16.
ge is following the match in real time, and the setup suggests a tight night in Curitiba. Coritiba needs a response at home after weeks of uneven results, and Santos needs composure after finally finding one clean win. With no margin between them, the tie may be decided by a single moment, or by penalties if neither side can separate itself over 90 minutes.
