Hugo Souza falls ill in Bolivia before saving a penalty and surpassing Dida's record at Corinthians
Hugo Souza had one of the most hectic 24 hours of his life this week. After falling ill at the altitude in Bolivia with the Brazilian national team , the Corinthians goalkeeper made a quick trip to play for the team in the Copa do Brasil against Athletico-PR . The effort paid off: he saved Gastón Benavídez's penalty in the second half to secure a 2-0 victory and surpass Dida 's record for most penalties saved for the club.
On Tuesday, Hugo was with the Brazilian national team for the qualifying match against Bolivia in El Alto—at an altitude of over 4,000 meters. He wasn't used by Carlo Ancelotti, but he felt the effects of the atmosphere even during the warm-up. To count on the player for the decisive match, Corinthians chartered a direct flight to Brazil, allowing him to be at the Neo Química Arena in less than 24 hours.
To "pay this bill" and make Bolivia's trip to Brazil worthwhile, which also included Andreas Pereira, from Palmeiras , among the crew, Hugo Souza only needed to hold on to a draw in normal time to guarantee qualification, but he went further.
The penalty save, in the second half, was his eighth since joining the club last year. The feat surpassed the record of Dida, a world, Brazilian, and Copa do Brasil champion with Corinthians, who saved seven penalties during his time in front of the Corinthians goal.
"I arrived at Corinthians saying I was eager to make history here, and today was another chapter. Dida is a role model, a guy I've idolized since I was a kid. This is gratifying," he said. Hugo reached the milestone with 18 fewer matches than the former Corinthians goalkeeper (77 vs. 95 matches). Wednesday's feat also brought him closer to the club's top three in this regard. Check it out below :
- Cássio (2012-2024) - 32 penalties saved
- Ronaldo Giovanelli (1987-1998) - 27
- Gilmar (1951-1961) - 11
- Hugo Souza (2024-) - 8
- Dida (1999-2000 and 2001-2002) - 7
The saved shot against Athletico-PR was the goalkeeper's fourth in regulation time. All previous saves were in this season's Campeonato Paulista: he was responsible for stopping Estêvão and Raphael Veiga of Palmeiras—the second in the second leg of the state final—and Pablo Dyego of Novorizontino.
The others occurred in penalty shootouts against Red Bull Bragantino and Grêmio , for the Copa Sudamericana and Copa do Brasil, respectively, in 2024.
By defending the penalty against Athletico-PR, Hugo also maintained Corinthians' status as the only team yet to concede a goal in the Copa do Brasil and still in the semifinals. They have gone six matches so far, against Novorizontino and Palmeiras, as well as the team from Paraná, without conceding a single goal.
In the next phase, they face the winner of the match between Cruzeiro and Atlético-MG , which will be decided this Thursday, the 11th. It will be the fourth consecutive time that Corinthians has reached this stage of the competition and the team is also seeking its fourth Copa do Brasil title — the last one was in 2009, with Ronaldo Fenômeno as a reference in the squad.
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