Corinthians has been crowned the champion of the U-17 Brazilian Championship, achieving an unprecedented title for the club. Although the team from Parque São Jorge lost 3-1 to Cruzeiro on Tuesday at the Independência Stadium in Belo Horizonte, the result was enough to secure the victory based on the aggregate score.
In the first leg played at Neo Química Arena in São Paulo, Corinthians had defeated Cruzeiro 3-0. This previous result established an aggregate final score of 4-3 in favor of the Paulista team, sealing their championship win despite the loss in the return match.
The goals in Tuesday's match were scored by Miguel, Thaylon, and Dudu for Cruzeiro. The only goal for Corinthians came from an own goal by Cruzeiro's player Diogo. The match began with a competitive first half characterized by passing errors. Cruzeiro started aggressively to reduce their aggregate deficit, while Corinthians focused on defense and counter-attacks but struggled to create significant danger.
Cruzeiro had several close calls in the opening period. At the 14th minute, Thaylon missed a strong shot from inside the box that went over the goal defended by Milani. Later, at the 27th minute, Miguel faced the goalkeeper one-on-one after a combination with Thaylon, but Milani made a crucial save close range. Corinthians managed to create danger late in the half; Matheus forced a save from Diogo at the 39th minute, and Tupã missed a clear opportunity shortly after.
The second half saw an immediate shift in momentum as Cruzeiro opened the scoring in the first minute of the period. Following a cross by Júlio, Miguel headed the ball past the hesitant goalkeeper to take the lead. Six minutes later, Thaylon scored again after a play involving Índio and Ronald, firing a left-footed shot into the net.
Corinthians nearly equalized at the 10th minute of the second half when Leo Rodrigues shot from inside the area, but the ball went over the crossbar. Cruzeiro confirmed their dominance with a third goal at the 22nd minute; Dudu received the ball in the penalty box and scored into the right corner past Milani.
The score was reduced to 3-1 in the 30th minute when Pedro Fernandes struck from long range. The shot hit Diogo, deflected off the crossbar, and rolled into the net behind the Cruzeiro goalkeeper. In stoppage time, Dudu had a chance to score a fourth goal for Cruzeiro, which would have forced a penalty shootout, but his attempt hit the post and was cleared by the Corinthians defense. The match concluded with Corinthians holding firm defensively to guarantee their historic title.
Following this achievement, both teams have upcoming fixtures. Cruzeiro is scheduled to face North on Saturday at 11:00 AM Brasília time in the final octagonal of the U-17 Mineiro Championship. Meanwhile, Corinthians will host São Paulo on the same day at 10:00 AM at Alfredo Schürig Stadium in São Paulo for the first leg of the U-17 Paulista Championship quarterfinals.
Sources: CNN Brasil.