Corinthians take on the visitors Sao Paulo in the first leg of Copa do Brasil semifinals. The match will be played on Wednesday, July 26th at Neo Quimica Arena (Sao Paulo).
The Brazilian Cup has reached the semi-final stage, and one of the matches in the semi-finals will be a city derby in São Paulo, known as "Majestoso." Corinthians have been quite unconvincing in the current season. In the national championship, they are fighting to avoid relegation and currently sit in 14th place, just four points above the relegation zone. In six home matches in Serie A, the "musketeers" have only managed to secure two victories. Additionally, within a span of one and a half weeks, the team will play their fourth match as they had to compete in two matches against Peruvian Universitario in the first stage of the South American Cup, alongside their commitments in the championship and the national cup.
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On the other hand, São Paulo topped their group in the Copa Sudamericana and advanced through the first stage of the playoffs, having had more time to rest recently compared to the hosts. This factor should not be overlooked when placing a bet on this match. In the national championship, the team under the guidance of Dorival Júnior looks better than their opponents and currently holds a high fifth position in the table. Their recent defeat to Cuiabá was the first loss for the "tricolor" in their last five matches. Before that, São Paulo secured victories against Palmeiras (2-1 and 1-0), Santos (4-1), and had a draw with RB Bragantino (0-0). They also lost to Cuiabá, which might have been influenced by their focus on the crucial cup clash against their main rival.
Predictably, for this derby, the bookmakers assess the chances of both teams to be roughly equal. I won't argue with them, and I'll simply cover two out of three possible outcomes with an X2 bet. In the current season, Corinthians appears noticeably weaker than their opponent, and São Paulo's schedule has been more packed lately. The "musketeers" have progressed through the previous stages of the cup only via penalty shootouts. In the current season's tournament, São Paulo has defeated all their opponents away from home: Ituano-SP (1-0), Sport Recife (2-0), and Palmeiras (2-1). In their last five head-to-head matches against Corinthians, they have lost only once. The visitors in this derby have a good chance to at least secure a draw.
Prediction for the match: Sao Paulo not to lose (X2).
