By Matheus Trunk
The technician Adenor Leonardo Bachi, Tite, is back. It’s a new house. The 64-year-old experienced professional, leaner and rested, begins 2026 full of expectations. He promises a Cruzeiro full of reinforcements to fight for titles. The coach arrived in Belo Horizonte accompanied by assistants Matheus Bachi, Vinícius Bergantin and physical trainer Fábio Mahseredjian. They are all Tite’s trusted names. Matheus is your son.
Third placed in the Brasileirão, Cruzeiro is qualified for the first phase of the Libertadores da América. The celestial team has not competed in the South American competition since 2019. The club’s SAF owner, Pedrinho Lourenço, believes that Tite is the right man for this type of international tournament. The gaucho was the first coach to win the Copa América (2019), Libertadores (2012) and Copa Sudamericana (2008). Tite takes Leonardo Jardim’s place.
Possible casualties
The changes to the Cruzeiro squad have already begun. Disaffected by the coach from Rio Grande do Sul, striker Gabriel Barbosa, known as Gabigol, was the first to leave Belo Horizonte. He was loaned to Santos after a weak year at Raposa. With one of the highest salaries in Brazil, the center forward was no more than a substitute and missed a decisive penalty in the semi-finals of the Copa do Brasil.
Flamengo is trying to sign striker Kaio Jorge, top scorer for Cruzeiro and the last Brasileirão. The Rio team offers 24 million euros (R$ 154 million) plus center forward Everton Cebolinha. But Pedrinho was irreducible: the goalscorer only leaves Toca da Raposa for a hefty 50 million euros (R$322 million).
Palmeiras is trying to bring in midfielder Matheus Pereira, number 10 and a regular starter in the last celestial season. With offensive talent and initiative, he impressed Abel Ferreira in the clashes between the two teams. The drop in Raphael Veiga’s performance is one of the factors why Pereira is wanted by Leila Pereira’s team.
Tite wants to count on Matheus Pereira, but he knows it won’t be easy. The number 10 wants to play in the World Cup and his staff believes that in a bigger center like São Paulo or in European football he could appear more. The parties continue to negotiate.
Negotiations
But Cabuloso doesn’t just have casualties for next season. The team from Belo Horizonte has its eyes on midfielder Gerson, who played for Flamengo and is at Zenit, in Russia. The athlete liked the Minas Gerais team’s project and wants to return to Brazil. The big problem is making a financial arrangement with the European team.
He is a player that we are negotiating, it is not an easy negotiation. It is a negotiation that will last a few days due to the fact that he is at a big club in Russia and because of Gerson’s greatness”, reveals Pedro Junio, vice-president of Cruzeiro
With striker Chico da Costa, almost everything is agreed. The center forward played in the last Brasileirão for Mirassol. His numbers were good: in 20 games he scored six goals for the country team. The celestial club must pay US$1 million (R$5.5 million) to Cerro Porteño, from Paraguay, the team that owns the center forward’s pass.
The expectation is that the 30-year-old player will come as an option for Raposa’s offensive sector. Chico da Costa’s name came up after Tite asked for a striker in the area. “He is a player with a profile that we already wanted for the 2026 season. A player in the area, a player to change the characteristics of a more closed game, he is a center forward who is more in the area, more of a finisher”, explains Pedro Junio.
New faces
Young Colombian striker Néiser Villareal, 20 years old, was the first reinforcement of the new season. There is an expectation of Pedrinho Lourenço in the athlete as he was one of the scorers in the last under-20 World Cup. Tite’s idea is for foreigners to play in the first rounds of the state championship to gain experience in Brazilian football.
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Goalkeeper Matheus Cunha, 24 years old, was the other player who also signed with the celestial team. The archer had been at Flamengo since 2021, but lost space in the Rio club with the arrival of Argentine goalkeeper Rossi. The idea is that he is another option to replace the veteran Cássio in some eventuality. Cruzeiro debuts in the Campeonato Mineiro against Pouso Alegre, on Saturday, January 10th, at 4:30 pm, at the Independência stadium.
