São Paulo’s restless season has claimed another coach. Corinthians have dismissed Fernando Diniz after only six months, with a seventh straight league defeat leaving the club just above Brazil’s relegation places.
The decision followed a 2-1 loss to Internacional, a result that dropped Corinthians to 16th in the standings. They sit one position clear of the relegation zone, and the urgency around restoring points has overtaken hopes that Diniz could reverse the slide.
Marcelo Paz, a club official, described the situation as difficult but said Corinthians needed to begin “a new phase” and return to collecting results in the league.
A short spell ends in São Paulo
Diniz oversaw 33 matches across all competitions, recording 13 wins, eight draws and 12 defeats. The league run proved decisive: seven consecutive losses made his position increasingly untenable at one of Brazil’s best-supported clubs.
Corinthians’ problems were not confined to the domestic table. The team also exited the Copa do Brasil and were knocked out of the Copa Libertadores at the quarter-final stage by Argentina’s Estudiantes de La Plata.
His time at the club also unfolded amid the turmoil surrounding the contract renewal of Dutch forward Memphis Depay, the side’s marquee player.
From continental champion to another abrupt exit
Diniz arrived with a major continental achievement on his record. He guided Fluminense to the 2023 Copa Libertadores title, the high point of his coaching career, before being appointed Brazil’s interim national-team manager later that year.
His subsequent club route took him through Cruzeiro and Vasco da Gama before Corinthians. In São Paulo, however, the combination of eliminations and a worsening relegation fight has brought his latest appointment to an early end.
