Coach Zé Ricardo made a point of praising his team after their 1-0 loss to Grêmio this Thursday at Ilha do Urubu in the Brazilian Championship. The result dropped the team to fourth place in the standings, surpassed by Grêmio itself. Next Sunday, the "Mais Querido" will try to bounce back against Cruzeiro in Belo Horizonte at 16 p.m. 

In the post-match press conference, the coach highlighted the red-and-black team's dominance, but lamented the team's lack of composure in finishing plays. He also made a point of praising the team's commitment, which sought the equalizer until the last minute. 

"It was a tough defeat, a difficult match, and Grêmio deserves congratulations. They defended very well. They scored their goal after a mistake on our part. The fans supported us until the end, and I thank them for their attitude. But unfortunately, we faced an opponent who remained defensive, and what we tried in attack was ineffective. We could have been calmer and improved our attack. But I commend the team for their commitment, and unfortunately, we didn't get the result," said Zé Ricardo, who, despite being 12 points behind leaders Corinthians, isn't taking anything for granted and won't change his strategy. 

"We work game by game. Unfortunately, the start of the championship hasn't been good. What Corinthians has done is worthy of applause. These are difficult games. We played against a team that plays very interesting football. We rushed forward, and Grêmio had the chance. The team tried to do what we agreed. They put in a lot of effort, but Grêmio was very strong defensively, making it difficult for us to find space, and deserved the victory," he added. 

In an attempt to equalize, Zé Ricardo brought on Geuvânio in the second half. In his debut, the number 23 attempted individual plays and showed great determination, earning praise from the manager. 

"He'll have time to get into the swing of things. He's been out for a long time, but he's already shown he's got the energy and moved very well. Against a closed team, we need a good player to open up space. But today it didn't work out the way we wanted. Now it's time to prepare for the game against Cruzeiro," concluded Ze Ricardo.